Lord Stanley will be in the building on Sunday night as the Carolina Hurricanes try to close out the Vegas Golden Knights in six games.
The Hurricanes have taken control of the Stanley Cup Final with a pair of wins, including a comprehensive effort in Game 5 on Thursday evening.
The Knights have plenty of questions to answer after dropping two in a row, but the biggest will be in goal. Carter Hart has not been up to snuff for Vegas in the Stanley Cup Final, and John Tortorella could turn to Adin Hill for Sunday evening.
Hurricanes vs. Golden Knights odds, predictions
Goaltending aside, the Golden Knights need a lot more from several players if they’re going to get this series back to Carolina for a Game 7.
Jack Eichel is playing reasonably well, and he does so much in his own zone, but he’s scored two goals in the entire postseason and has yet to really take over a game in this series. Carolina’s swarming defense has a lot to do with Eichel’s lack of scoring, but he’s only got five shots on goal (not including hitting the crossbar) in his last four games.
John Tortorella will need to do whatever he can to get Eichel into situations where he can dominate. I expect Eichel to play close to 30 minutes if the situation calls for it, and to recognize that he needs to be the catalyst of an offense that is struggling to keep up with Carolina.
Betting on the NHL?
I like the price on Eichel to get on the board in this contest.
As for a side, the Knights look like they have a shred of value as a slight underdog at home. Carolina’s outscored Vegas, 14-9, in the last three games, but they’ve benefited from porous goaltending and plenty of power play opportunities.
Vegas was the best defensive team in the NHL for the regular season and the first three rounds of this postseason. I’ll bet on that version of the Knights showing up in this must-win contest.
The Play: Jack Eichel to score 1+ goals (+230) | Golden Knights moneyline (-105, FanDuel)
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Michael Leboff is a long-suffering Islanders fan, but a long-profiting sports bettor with 10 years of experience in the gambling industry. He loves using game theory to help punters win bracket pools, find long shots, and learn how to beat the market in mainstream and niche sports.