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Situational Slaughter - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #83 Tuesday 10* Top Play Buffalo Sabres Money Line (+) @ New Jersey Devils @ 7:05 ET - This is a back to back spot for the Sabres but it is not as if the odds makers were not aware of that when they posted the money line on this game. That said, it has continued to spike toward the Devils and I am happy to grab the additional value with the road dog in this one. Buffalo actually outshot a very stingy Islanders team last night by a solid margin and yet still fell just short on the scoreboard by a single goal. This will only strengthen the Sabres resolve in terms of tonight's game. Not only that they do have Carter Hutton to tend goal tonight after Linus Ullmark was between the pipes last night. Hutton has allowed just a single goal in each of his two road appearances this season and I look for him to get the job done here against a Devils team that is a big over-rated in my opinion. Also, the Sabres are a respectable 3-3-3 on the road this season while the Devils have lost 4 of 6 home games this season. In other words, the home ice "edge" is truly not even an "edge" in this early season match-up. I know it is a revenge game for New Jersey but the Sabres are just as hungry for this one after last night's loss which, again, was a quite impressive performance against an Islanders team that is generally tough to play against. I like what I am seeing from the Sabres right now and will back them as a dog here. 10* BUFFALO

Situational Slaughter - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #35 Monday 10* Top Play Calgary Flames Money Line (+) @ Toronto Maple Leafs @ 7:05 ET - Great situational set up here as the Maple Leafs are off a big win over Montreal - which was also Toronto's 3rd straight overall - while the Flames are off an embarrassing loss (7-1) at Edmonton. This situation will bring out the best in Calgary and the road team is 3-0 in the last 3 meetings between these teams. That includes the Leafs taking each of the first two meetings this season at Calgary even though the Flames did hold an edge on shots in each game. Both those match-ups were very close and Calgary is fired up for revenge after they fell just short. The Flames lost each of those games by a single goal and will prove to be the much hungrier team in this one tonight which means we are getting excellent line value with the road dog here. 10* CALGARY

TV Annihilation - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #25 Sunday 10* Top Play Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (+) vs Boston Bruins @ 7:35 in Stateline, NV - Lake Tahoe - The Flyers are missing some players. But there is simply too much line value here to pass up. Keep in mind this is an outdoor game. It is a unique game in a unique setting and if you're going to offer a high-quality team with high-quality goaltending a +160 price in a neutral site setting it is something I will not pass up on. This is particularly true because the Bruins are also down a couple solid players and plus Boston hasn't exactly been piling up the goals of late. In fact, the Bruins have averaged only 1.8 goals per game in regulation time of their last 5 games. Also, Boston enters this game off back to back losses by a combined score of 7 to 4. It is simply hard to justify the Bruins being such a huge favorite in a neutral site game in which the Flyers have come up with some creative line combos too that are geared toward continuing to frustrate the Bruins attack. Too much line value to pass up here. This is a money line that was once as high as -200 and the fact it has come down substantially from that, despite the Flyers missing some key guys, tells you that there is some sharp money on the big dog in this one. 10* PHILADELPHIA

TV Game of the Week - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #5 Saturday 10* Top Play New York Islanders Money Line (+) @ Pittsburgh Penguins @ 7:05 ET - Penguins got a rare dominating win, 4-1, over an Islanders team that had been playing very well. That happened on Thursday and now, on Saturday, the Isles get a chance at payback! New York had been on an 8-game points streak plus had won 5 of 6 games prior to that ugly loss to the Pens. In those 5 wins the Islanders allowed an average of only 1.2 goals per game and this is typical Isles hockey under head coach Barry Trotz. That is what I am expecting to see tonight as they bounce back from the loss and take advantage of this shot at immediate revenge. Not only are the Islanders the better team 5 on 5 in terms of limiting opponents chances, they also are the better team from a special teams perspective thus far this season. In comparison with the Penguins, the Isles have been the better team on the power play and on the penalty kill. 10* NEW YORK ISLANDERS

NHL Network Crusher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #65 Friday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Carolina Hurricanes vs Chicago Blackhawks @ 7:05 ET - The Hurricanes are a strong team and still very potent and capable in the offensive zone. However, Carolina won't be the same in their own end of the ice until they get Petr Mrazek back between the pipes. That is why 8 of their last 9 games have totaled at least 7 goals and I suspect this one will as well. The Canes are coming off a loss and have scored an average of 5 goals per game this season when off a loss. However, Carolina has been struggling to keep the puck out of their own net without Mrazek in there and they have allowed at least 3 goals in 9 straight games. Keep in mind, the Hurricanes are a 2 to 1 favorite here on the money line for a reason so if the odds favor them allowing 3 goals but also favor them winning the game then...bingo...yes we should see at least a 4-3 final here. I know Chicago has been trending toward lower-scoring games but the Blackhawks two match-ups with the Canes this season saw both games go over the total and saw an average of 8 goals scored per game in regulation time of those games. More of the same expected here. 10* OVER the total in Carolina

NHL Network Rout - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #49 Thursday 10* Top Play New York Islanders Money Line (+) @ Pittsburgh Penguins @ 7:05 ET - A lot of this below is taken from Tuesday's write-up going against Pittsburgh and then has been updated because I am fading them again here for the same reasons! The Penguins are 7-6-1 this season but are the most fortunate team in the league in my opinion. Only 2 of their 7 wins have come in regulation. Their other 5 wins have come in the shootout or overtime. Also, one of the two wins that was a victory in regulation was a game in which Pittsburgh trailed going to the 3rd period but then won it with a goal with just a minute and a half to go in the game. So the Penguins did not dominate a single game out of their first dozen games this season. That was until they pulled away late in Sunday's win versus Washington for a 'not as easy as it looked' 6-3 win over the Capitals. By the way, Pittsburgh has 5 losses this season by a multiple-goal margin with 3 of those coming by 3 goals apiece! In summation, this team is still very over-rated right now so we are getting line value with an Islanders team that comes into this game surging plus seeking revenge for a loss in their most recent meeting with the Penguins and, naturally, that Pittsburgh win came in extra time! That Pens win was in the shootout and now the Islanders are looking to avenge that here! The Isles have been the much better club early this season in terms of special teams play with their penalty kill ranking an edge and their power play ranking an edge over that of the Penguins. Big time payback expected here and plus we get the Islanders at a plus money price here since they are on the road. I will take it as New York enters this game on an 8 game points streak. That includes having won 5 of last 6 with the lone loss being the aforementioned shootout loss to the Penguins. Look for a big response here. 10* NY ISLANDERS

NHL Network Blowout Rout - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #82 Wednesday 10* Top Play Carolina Hurricanes Money Line (-) vs Florida Panthers @ 5:05 ET - The Hurricanes were as much as a -170 favorite here but have now dropped to as low as a -130 as of game day morning. I know Florida deserves respect but there is a reason this money line was so big on Carolina and it is absolutely justified. The Panthers are off a huge win at Tampa Bay. Beating the defending Stanley Cup champs on their home ice was a big deal whether the arena was packed with fans or not. Florida had not beaten the Lightning there since 2016 and they are, of course, instate rivals. That said, this is a flat spot for the Panthers and I do not see the Hurricanes slowing down here. The Canes are off a huge 7-3 win at Columbus and continue to perform well with James Reimer filling in between the pipes while Petr Mrazek deals with a thumb injury. Carolina is 7-1 in Reimer's 8 appearances and, while his overall numbers may not be spectacular, he is 3-0 with a 2.31 GAA on home ice. The Hurricanes had been dominating the Panthers in recent meetings but lost the most recent game and that was in Carolina about 1 year ago and they lost despite having a 44-22 edge in shots on goal. It is payback time here and the situation is a fantastic one for Florida to get crushed. There are rumors that Alex Nedeljkovic will get the start for the Hurricanes here but, keep in mind, he has allowed just 3 goals in each of his first two appearances and the young goalie got a confidence boost with a shootout win over Dallas in his most recent start. So this is part of what is driving this line lower but, in reality, all it is doing is giving us even more line value with a low line now available on the Canes. I will take it! 10* CAROLINA 

NBC Sports Network Rout - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #29 Tuesday 10* Top Play Washington Capitals Money Line (+) @ Pittsburgh Penguins @ 7:05 ET - The Penguins are 7-5-1 this season but are the most fortunate team in the league in my opinion. Only 2 of their 7 wins has come in regulation. Their other 5 wins have come in the shootout or overtime. Also, one of the two wins that was a victory in regulation was a game in which Pittsburgh trailed going to the 3rd period but then won it with a goal with just a minute and a half to go in the game. So the Penguins did not dominate a single game out of their first dozen games this season. That was until they pulled away late in Sunday's win versus Washington for a 'not as easy as it looked' 6-3 win over the Capitals. By the way, Pittsburgh has 4 losses by a multiple-goal margin with 3 of those coming by 3 goals apiece! In summation, this team is still very over-rated right now so we are getting line value with a Capitals team that despises them. Yes it is Ovechkin versus Crobsy once again and the Penguins won the first three meetings this season and, naturally, the first two wins came in extra time! One win in the shootout and one in overtime. The only drawback against the Caps on Sunday was that it was their first game in a week but now, after getting their skating legs back in the defeat over the weekend, they are out for triple revenge and will be ready to go here now that they are game-tested again. Also, the Capitals have been the much better club in terms of special teams play with their penalty kill ranking an edge and their power play ranking a huge edge over that of the Penguins. Big time payback expected here and plus we get the Caps at a plus money price here since they are on the road. I will take it! 10* WASHINGTON

Afternoon Annihilation - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #6 Monday 10* Top Play Arizona Coyotes Money Line (+) vs St Louis Blues @ 4:05 ET - After giving up the tying goal with less than 6 minutes to go in the game Saturday and then losing in overtime to these same Blues, the Coyotes are ready to execute payback Monday. This game is again on their home ice and Arizona has now lost back to back games at home to St Louis. This followed a stretch that saw the Coyotes win 4 of 5 games and that included 3 straight over the Blues. These teams are playing the rubber match of a set of 7 straight games due to quirky scheduling as a result of covid issues around the league and I look for a huge effort from the angry home side here. Arizona had allowed an average of only 1.5 goals per game their last 4 home games prior to now allowing 4 goals in regulation time of each of their last two games against the Blues. Now, after a day off Sunday to regroup, look for the Coyotes to return to their stingy ways on defense and in net and they will frustrate St Louis on their way to a home win here. 10* ARIZONA

Game of the Month - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #1 Sunday 10* Top Play Washington Capitals Money Line (+) @ Pittsburgh Penguins @ 3:05 ET - The Penguins are 6-5-1 this season but are the most fortunate team in the league in my opinion. Only 1 of their 6 wins has come in regulation. Their other 5 wins have come in the shootout or overtime. Also, that lone victory was a game in which Pittsburgh trailed going to the 3rd period but then won it with a goal with just a minute and a half to go in the game. So the Penguins have not dominated a single game out of a dozen games this season. But, by the way, Pittsburgh has 4 losses by a multiple-goal margin with 3 of those coming by 3 goals apiece! In summation, this team is very over-rated right now so we are getting line value with a Capitals team that despises them. Yes it is Ovechkin versus Crobsy once again and the Penguins won the first two meetings this season and, naturally, both wins came in extra time! One win in the shootout and one in overtime. The only drawback against the Caps here is that this is their first game in a week but they are out for double revenge and will be ready to go here with fresh legs. Also, the Capitals have been the much better club in terms of special teams play with their penalty kill ranking an edge and their power play ranking a huge edge over that of the Penguins. Big time payback expected here and plus we get the Caps at a plus money price here since they are on the road. I will take it! 10* WASHINGTON

10* NEW YORK ISLANDERS - The Bruins are certainly playing extremely well but they are also leading a bit of a charmed life so to speak. Boston has been fortunate in some tight wins lately and now plays the 2nd night of a back to back plus faces an Islanders team that has found their game again recently. Off a tough shootout loss to the Penguins which was preceded by back to back wins the Islanders are in solid bounce back mode here. The Isles never trailed in the game against Pittsburgh and gave up the tying goal with under 20 seconds to go. It was a truly bad beat as they had an opportunity (easy one) at the empty net too but the net was off its moorings and so they couldn't ice the game a little before that late Pens goal. All in all the Isles have been playing better of late and they now come in hungry off a tough loss while the Bruins in the 2nd game of a back to back and the win took a lot of effort as Boston had to fight like hell to hang on for a 1-0 win. This one goes to the home dog in my opinion as the Bruins struggle in the back to back and the Islanders come out fighting mad after that loss to the Pens. The Isles have not lost a game in regulation in over two weeks. 10* NEW YORK ISLANDERS

Earliest Cash - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #56 Friday 10* Top Play New York Rangers Money Line (+) vs Boston Bruins @ 7:05 ET - Igor Shesterkin should be back between the pipes for the Rangers in this one and he was great last season and has continued his fantastic play right into this season. The Bruins are a great team but they were in a dog-fight with New York on Wednesday and now they meet again on Friday. Boston eked out the win but I like the Rangers now with having their top goalie again for this one. Also, New York has been playing quite well even in the defensive zone and this is different from Rangers teams of recent seasons. While it may seem tough to fade a strong team like the Bruins here, they are way over-priced if you have been paying attention to how well the Rangers have been playing of late and also the fact that Boston has certainly had some good fortune of late for sure. Bruins are strong solid team but no way should Rangers be a +150 dog here, especially after how their match-up played out on Wednesday night. It is time for some home dog payback here. 10* NEW YORK RANGERS

Earliest Cash - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #30 Thursday 10* Top Play New York Islanders Money Line (-) vs Pittsburgh Penguins @ 7:05 ET - The Penguins have lost 6 of 7 road games this season plus will be playing just their 2nd game in the past 10 days! Rust could be a factor for sure for Pittsburgh whereas the Islanders have played twice in the past 5 days. Also, the home/road dichotomy of the Pens meshes well with that of the Isles here. Prior to their most recent game being a road win over the Rangers, the Islanders had 9 straight games in which the home team won every single game. Look for that strong home trending to continue here. Also, the Isles have held the upper hand in recent match-ups between these teams as they have taken 9 of 12 including 3 in a row. Look for the streak to reach 4 in a row here as the Pens Evgeni Malkin is listed as questionable for this one too and that could be an issue for Pittsburgh in this one as well. These teams have each played 11 games but the Penguins have allowed 3.7 goals per game this season while the Islanders have allowed only 2.5 goals per game this season. Pittsburgh also has some injury issues with some D-men heading into this game too in terms of injury concerns. Home ice and health make the difference here. 10* NEW YORK ISLANDERS

Contrarian Crusher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #26 Wednesday 10* Top Play Montreal Canadiens Money Line (-) vs Toronto Maple Leafs @ 7:35 ET - The Canadiens never trailed the Maple Leafs on opening night and even had a two-goal lead during the game. However, Montreal ended up on the wrong end of an overtime loss and they have had to wait 4 weeks for this rematch and I expect them to make the most of it. This time they meet in Montreal and note that in the first hitting the Habs had 5 more blocked shots and also had 32 hits compared to just 14 for the Leafs. I like what this Montreal club is doing early this season and I expect them to again be very aggressive and hard-hitting here against the Maple Leafs. Montreal knows they are hosting the team that most project to be the top team in the Canadian Division and this match-up means a ton to the Canadiens. Montreal has allowed only 2.2 goals per game their last 8 games. Toronto is off back to back wins over a struggling Canucks team but that was preceded by a 4-game stretch in which the Maple Leafs allowed at least 3 goals in all 4 games. I look for the gritty, revenge-minded Habs to get a hard-fought home ice win here. 10* MONTREAL

Situational Slaughter - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #3 Tuesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Ottawa Senators vs Edmonton Oilers @ 7:05 ET - Mike Smith returned for the Oilers last night and was fantastic in goal. However, with this being a back to back, the struggling Mikko Koskinen is expected to be back between the pipes tonight. Also, Ottawa used #1 goalie Matt Murray last night so that means the back-up Marcus Hogberg likely to get the start tonight. He is 0-4 with a 4.54 GAA this season. With back-up goalies involved and coming off a rare, low-scoring game last night, don't be surprised if this one gets a little crazy. Keep in mind, Ottawa is allowing 4 goals per game this season and Edmonton, prior to last night's game, was on a 6-game stretch that saw them allow 4 goals per game. I am expecting at least a 4-3 type game here but would not be surprised at all if we see 8 or more goals in this one. In other words, great value here. I'll take it. 10* OVER the total in Ottawa

Earliest Cash - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #67 Monday 10* Top Play New York Islanders Money Line (+) @ New York Rangers @ 7:05 ET - These rivals faced off in their first two games this season and the Islanders won the first in a shutout but then the Rangers took the 2nd game in an embarrassing 5-0 loss for the Isles. That said, the payback is coming here. The road team had won 4 straight meetings prior to the Rangers taking that game back on the 16th of January. Look for the road team dominance in this series to resume here. The Islanders got back on track with a win versus the Penguins Saturday and I look for the Isles to now build on that. They were so close with back to back losses coming after regulation and now that they got the over the hump they won't look back. This is a hockey club much better than the 5-game losing streak would lead you to believe. They were right on the cusp of turning things around and, now that they have done it, they keep it going while getting some revenge here. The Isles catch the Rangers at the right time as the Blueshirts are off key back to back wins over the Penguins and Capitals. The Pens had beaten them 3 straight times so they really wanted that one badly and then got the win over the Caps despite being outshot. The Rangers are still young defensively and the Islanders have the better blue line in my opinion which should key this revenge win. In the Isles 5-0 loss to the Rangers in their most recent meeting the Islanders actually had 20 blocked shots compared to just 6 for the Rangers and they out-hit them 31-22. Look for a physical revenging road team to key the payback here as well after that whitewashing. 10* NEW YORK ISLANDERS

Contrarian Crusher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #51 Sunday 10* Top Play Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (-) @ Washington Capitals @ 12:05 ET - Flyers favored on the road after back to back losses? Must be some kind of mistake, right? In typical contrarian fashion I am backing the side many will not want here. Philadelphia actually has won 4 straight against the Capitals and the last 3 victories have come by a combined margin of 15 to 5. In other words, that is domination and here Philly comes in angry after back to back games they essentially gave away against the Bruins. This followed the Flyers winning 4 straight games and they should get right back on track here. Vitek Vanecek has allowed 7 goals in his last two starts and Ilya Samsonov is still out. Conversely the Flyers should have Carter Hart back in goal for this one plus key D-man Phillip Myers could be back and also center Sean Courturier is nearing a return. Road team rolls the Caps again here just as they have been doing in recent meetings. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Contrarian Crusher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #42 Saturday 10* Top Play New York Islanders Money Line (-) vs Pittsburgh Penguins @ 7:05 ET - How can the Islanders open up as a pick'em here considering they have lost 5 straight games? Exactly! The odds maker knows that this team is much better than their record shows and they will be extra hungry here after back to back losses that each came in overtime against the Flyers. Note that part of the reason the Islanders have struggled out of the gates this season could be attributed to a road-heavy schedule as well. By the way, note that the home team is now a perfect 8-0 in the Islanders last 8 games so betting on home ice in Isles games early this season has been a big money maker. The Islanders have now had a layoff of nearly week but so too have the Penguins. By the way, Pittsburgh will attract market attention here because they had won 5 of 7 before a loss to the Rangers in their most recent game. However, the Penguins 5 wins have featured only 1 in regulation and that one was a bit fortunate by the way too! The other 4 victories have all come in overtime or the shootout. The Pens have been living dangerously without a single win by a multiple-goal margin while 4 of their 5 losses this season have been by 2 or more goals. There is some "sneaky value" here with the Islanders is the point I am making and I'll take it for a top play here! 10* ISLANDERS

NHL Network Annihilation - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #24 Friday 10* Top Play Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (+) vs Boston Bruins @ 7:05 ET - The Bruins completely outplayed the Flyers in the 1st period of Wednesday's game. However, the Flyers were the better team for the 2nd period and most of the 3rd period. For the game Philadelphia outscored Boston 3-1 in 5 on 5 hockey. The difference in the game? 3 power play goals for the Bruins after the Flyers had a 3-1 lead with about 8 minutes to go in the game. Boston got a power play goal after a "closing the hand on the puck" penalty which was really unintentional and no one one wanted to take a penalty at that point in the game for the Flyers. That got the Bruins back in it but the Flyers still hung on to the lead until the Bruins got the equalizer, also on the power play, with just seconds left in the game. Then Boston got the game winner in overtime on, you guessed it, the power play! The Flyers are extremely fired up heading into this revenge game. They are very strong on home ice. Carter Hart is very sharp on home ice throughout his career. They were the better team Wednesday and deserved a win and didn't get it. This will be payback big time as the Flyers also lost both games at Boston earlier this season and one of those was after regulation too. So Philly has tremendous motivation here and proved in the 2nd and most of the 3rd period (again before some nonsense started) that they absolutely are capable of outplaying the Bruins for very long stretches. After deserving a win and not getting it, you know what is coming here on home ice for the Flyers. This is a payback game where we get the money line at a payback price. I certainly will not pass up on this and certainly have no hesitation in going with a top play here. 10* PHILADELPHIA

East Div Game of the Month - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #9 Thursday 10* Top Play Washington Capitals Money Line (+) @ New York Rangers @ 7:05 ET - Great spot here. The Capitals are off their very first regulation loss of the season. Not only that it came by virtue of blowing a 3-0 lead against the Bruins and losing 5-3! Keep in mind that came against the January NHL rookie of the month - Caps goalie Vitek Vanecek. I fully expect he and the Capitals to bounce back huge here. Washington is catching the Rangers at the perfect time for a bounce back effort. New York is off a much-wanted win over the Penguins. The Rangers had lost each of their first three games against Pittsburgh this season before finally breaking through with a 3-1 win on Tuesday. That sets this one up perfectly. Also, the Rangers won each of the last two meetings with the Capitals last season so Washington certainly won't take them lightly. New York, prior to beating the Pens, had won just 2 of 8 games this season. Great value with the road team here. 10* WASHINGTON

NBC Sports Network Rout - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #76 Wednesday 10* Top Play Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (+) vs Boston Bruins @ 8:05 ET - The Bruins are off a huge win versus the Capitals where they rallied from a 3-0 deficit to win 5-3 at Washington. Boston has been playing very well but they now take on a Flyers team that is out for revenge after losing both games at Boston less than two weeks ago. Philadelphia lost the first game in a shootout but then got drilled 6-1 in the second game. The Flyers have since won 4 straight games and have allowed only 2.2 goals per game during this hot streak. Keep in mind, Boston had lost 3 straight road games prior to the break through game at Washington. That big rally after being down 3-0 could leave the Bruins a little "spent" here. That was a tremendous rally. The Flyers have big-time revenge on their mind here and while I certainly respect Boston and know they have played well recently, Philly is tough on home ice. Goalie Carter Hart has phenomenal numbers at home in his career and he and the Flyers offer great value here as a home dog. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Situational Slaughter - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #59 Tuesday 10* OVER the total in Montreal Canadiens vs Vancouver Canucks @ 7 ET - Yesterday's game totaled 8 goals and now each of the four meetings between these games has totaled at least 7 goals this season. Not only that, these 4 games have averaged 9 goals per game. It has simply been crazy scoring when the Habs and the Canucks have met this season. Also, Vancouver had scored an average of 5 goals per game in a 4-game winning streak prior to yesterday's loss. The Canucks have plenty of confidence and will bounce back here with a response but they simply have not proven the ability to stop the Canadiens yet this season and I don't see that changing in this one. Montreal has scored 4 or more goals in 7 of their last 9 games. More of the same here and great value with this total available at a 6 goals. Hurry as it will likely move to a solid 6.5 in my opinion. 10* OVER the total in Montreal

Situational Slaughter - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #43 Monday 10* Top Play Boston Bruins Money Line (-) @ Washington Capitals @ 7 ET - The Bruins lost to the Capitals on an overtime goal but outshot Washington substantially in each of the 3 periods. Boston, for the game, had a 43-23 edge in shots on goal. I liked what I have been seeing from the Bruins recently and now they welcomed back Pastrnak as well. The Bruins, prior to the tough loss to the Caps, had won 4 straight games and scored an average of 4 goals per game during this streak. Boston allowed 2 or less goals in 6 of their first 7 games prior to the 4-3 OT loss Saturday. The Capitals, conversely, have allowed 3 or more goals in 7 of their 9 games this season. I know this is a bit of a price to lay but the revenge-minded Bruins are out for blood on Monday and they will avenge Saturday's loss. That shots on goal edge was no fluke. 10* BOSTON

Game of the Month - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #31 Sunday 10* Top Play New York Islanders Money Line (+) @ Philadelphia Flyers @ 7:05 ET - The Islanders, on Thursday, blew a 3-0 lead at Washington and lost 6-3. I was really unimpressed with New York and figured they would be flat Saturday and they were at first and got down 2-0 to the Flyers. Though we did win with Philadelphia 3-2 yesterday in overtime the fact is the Islanders were the much better team from the 2nd period on. The Isles outscored the Flyers 2-0 in the 2nd period and then dominated the play in the 3rd too even though it was a scoreless period. The Islanders did a great job of bottling up the Flyers attack and Philadelphia continues to be heavily outshot in games. That said, I fully expect a huge bounce back win for the Islanders here as they have now lost 4 straight games but yesterday, in the final two periods and overtime period, certainly looked nothing like a team that has gone winless in 4 straight. The Isles are ready to turn this around and that showed yesterday and I fully expect that today it will translate to a win. The Flyers will have Brian Elliott in goal here and he is solid but he doesn't have the phenomenal numbers that Carter Hart does when he is at home. Also, the Flyers are still really missing Sean Couturier's presence on the ice. He was the Selke Trophy winner last season. The Isles showed me a lot yesterday and I expect an even more determined effort from the road dog today after falling just short yesterday. This team is very hungry now and had won 7 of the last 10 meetings, including playoff meetings, in this series prior to yesterday. 10* NEW YORK ISLANDERS

10* PHILADELPHIA Money Line -120 - The Flyers have playoff revenge here. The Islanders eliminated from the post-season less than 5 months ago so Philly surely hasn't forgotten it. This season New York appears to have taken a step back while the Flyers still appear very solid. These teams have played almost the exact same number of games yet the Islanders have only scored half as many goals. Also, the Isles once vaunted defense and goaltending certainly doesn't look like it once did after a disappointing effort versus the short-handed Capitals saw the Islanders blow a 3-0 lead and lose 5-3. The Flyers are known for being very tough at home where goalie Carter Hart excels and Philly is off back to back wins entering this contest plus has won 3 of their 4 games on home ice this season. New York, on the other hand, has been slipping and has lost 3 straight games and has been outscored 11-5 in the process. 10* PHILADELPHIA

NHL Network Crusher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #61 Friday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Chicago Blackhawks vs Columbus Blue Jackets @ 8:05 ET - This one is all about the value and we get that value in two ways here. One is that Columbus is known for playing tight, low-scoring games so that is why this total is a 5.5 even though the game involves a Chicago team that often gets involved in high-scoring games. The second type of value here is simply situational value as the fact is that the Blue Jackets are off a very hard-fought shootout win 3-2 over Florida last night and could be a little flat defensively after they fought so hard to get the win last night versus the Panthers. So the fact is the Blue Jackets have a pair of very solid goaltenders and after Merzlikins was in goal last night, we are likely to see Korpisalo here. Both are strong but ANY goalie can be exposed if the defense in front of him is not on top of their game and I truly expect Columbus to struggle some defensively in this one. It is their 3rd game in 4 nights and each of the last two games went to shootouts which means they were hard-fought games that included an OT period as well. As for the Blackhawks, they have one solid goalie so far this season as Lankinen has really stepped up and been impressive. However, Chicago has still allowed an average of 40.5 shots on goal their past two games. Opponents are getting chances because the Blackhawks are simply not that good defensively. Don't be surprised if the Blue Jackets are afforded (and cash in on) some great scoring chances here. The fact this total is a 5.5 is a great value as the Blackhawks have scored an average of 5 goals per game in their two home games this season so they are very confident at the United Center but this is still a team that has allowed an average of 3.5 goals per game this season. I fully expect a 4-3 type game here. 10* OVER the total in Chicago

COLUMBUS - The Blue Jackets jumped out to a 2-0 lead Tuesday and never trailed the entire game. In fact, a game-tying goal with just 3 seconds left in the game is the only reason it went to overtime. The Panthers then went on to win in the shootout and can you imagine how ticked off coach John Tortorella was in the locker room after this one? The fiery head coach will have the Jackets ready to respond here and Jack Roslovic, Columbus native acquired from Winnipeg, is expected to be available to go tonight. Looking at their last 5 games, the Blue Jackets have a pair of wins by a combined score of 8 to 4 and 3 losses ALL coming AFTER regulation. Look for Columbus to come out hungrier than ever tonight and improve to 3-1 the last 4 times they were off a loss. Florida is a perfect 3-0 this season but two of the wins came after regulation and 2 of of the victories came against a struggling Blackhawks team. The Blue Jackets are the better hockey club and we are getting line value here as a result of some early season unusual results that will NOT continue so lets grab the exceptional value with the home team here. 10* COLUMBUS

NBC Sports Network Rout - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #29 Wednesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Nashville Predators vs Chicago Blackhawks @ 7:35 ET - The Blackhawks had leads of 1-0 and 2-1 in yesterday's game. Each time they tried to sit on them and it ultimately cost them in the 3-2 OT loss. Chicago is a young team and not very good defensively and they saw last night once again that they are not the kind of hockey club that can just sit back and try to protect a 1-goal lead. The Blackhawks are simply not build that way. So, after last night's loss and getting outshot by about a 2-1 ratio, look for Chicago to be much more aggressive tonight. I expect a lot more scoring as a result. The goalie match-up is likely to be Kevin Lankinen versus Juuse Saros. The Hawks goalie does not have much NHL experience and he got blitzed in his lone road start this season and allowed 5 goals. The Predators Saros is a solid netminder but is also streaky and he comes into this one struggling as he has allowed 8 goals in his last two appearances. I am expecting plenty of goals here with it being a back to back and the way last night's game played out gives the Predators a lot of confidence and they will be aggressive tonight after getting the OT winner thanks to their captain last night. The Blackhawks must be more aggressive and attack more but this is also a team that, though they still have some offensive firepower, have shown early this season that they give up far too many great scoring chances and the goals against keep piling up here. 10* OVER the total in Nashville

Situational Slaughter - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #24 Tuesday 10* Top Play Calgary Flames Money Line (+) vs Toronto Maple Leafs @ 9:05 ET - The Maple Leafs hung on for a tight win when these teams met at Calgary on Sunday. Now this is the Flames final home game until February 6th and I fully expect revenge-minded Calgary to make the most of it. Leafs goalie Jack Campbell got hurt late in the game and his status is uncertain for tonight. Frederik Andersen is the normal top netminder and so he might be between the pipes anyway here but note that he had a rough road game (5 goals allowed) in his only start away from home this season. Andersen also allowed 4 goals in his lone appearance at Calgary last season. I really like the way Jacob Markstrom has been playing between the pipes for the Flames early this season and expect him to win the goaltending battle tonight. Calgary's two wins this season have come by a combined score of 8 to 2 while their two defeats each came by the slimmest of margins. As a result, the Flames are still a little undervalued right now. Give Toronto credit as they did play a hard-fought game Sunday as they were outhit but dominated in terms of blocked shots. The Flames now come back strong as they were not happy with losing the game Sunday thanks to a very late power play goal in the 2nd period that shifted momentum. Payback time from a determined Flames team Tuesday. They raise their level of play here to again bounce back off a loss. 10* CALGARY

Payback Smash - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #51 Sunday 10* Top Play New York Rangers Money Line (+) @ Pittsburgh Penguins @ 7 ET - The Rangers are hungry for payback here. The Penguins are dealing with some injuries to their defense and that was already an area of concern for Pittsburgh heading into this season. New York is fired up after blowing a 3-1 lead in this match-up Friday and going on to lose in overtime. The Rangers have been getting the better goaltending than the Pens so far this season and I look for New York to again build a solid lead in this one and this time they hold on! There is a reason the Penguins are priced so short here at home. In other words, don't let the line fool you. Many will be on Pittsburgh here but they have had some very fortunate wins of late and their luck runs out here as the Rangers come in fired up and won't stop until the final seconds run off the clock in what should be a solid road victory for this motivated bunch. 10* NEW YORK RANGERS

10* BUFFALO - The guys that the Capitals lost are VERY significant. Due to a health protocol violation, this is expected to be the first of 4 games for the Caps without Ovechkin and Kuznetsov (two of their top forwards), Orlov (one of their top defensemen) and Samsonov (their #1 goalie). That is why the odds makers were correct in pricing this line at around a -135 on Buffalo and I saw it as high as a -145 earlier. Now it is down to where the Sabres are practically a pick'em and this is offering significant value on Buffalo in this spot. The Sabres have revenge from losing each of the first two games of the season against the Capitals in Buffalo. In that 2nd game they faced the goalie they will face again tonight and that is Vanecek. The young netminder is getting his first taste of the NHL and did beat the Sabres in their first meeting but Buffalo outshot the Caps 31 to 21 and I expect Vanecek won't fare nearly as well in the 2nd meeting. He is now "the guy" with Samsonov out and that puts a lot of pressure on the young netminder. Also, he certainly didn't look overly great against the Penguins when they hung 5 goals on him Tuesday. Situational value here is off the charts. 10* BUFFALO

Earliest Cash - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #3 Thursday 10* Top Play Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (+) @ Boston Bruins @ 7:05 ET - When a team is struggling to score goals they will often start to squeeze the sticks a little too tight until they can snap out of it. Essentially they start pressing until they can get back on track. That said, I don't see the bounce back happening for the Bruins tonight. They are facing a tough Flyers team that is playing with plenty of confidence thanks to being one of the highest scoring teams in league so far and coming off a 3-0 shutout win. Philadelphia is scoring an average of nearly 4 goals per game while, at the other end of the spectrum, the Bruins are averaging only about 1 goal per game thus far. In fact, the only team that has scored less than the 4 goals that Boston has on the season is Dallas and that is because they have yet to play a game because of health protocols relating to covid. Getting Philly at an underdog price here when you consider the current trending of the offensive production of these two teams is simply too good to pass up. Yes the Flyers have a couple injury issues but so too do the Bruins including David Pastrnak and that is a big absence for them. 10* PHILADELPHIA

NBCSN Blowout Rout - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #77 Wednesday 10* Top Play OVER 6.5 goals in Toronto Maple Leafs vs Edmonton Oilers @ 7:05 ET - One of the great things about the divisional realignment for this season is we'll get to see Shane Matthews and the Maple Leafs match up with Connor McDavid and the Oilers 9 times this season! Normally in different conferences they would be meeting just twice a season. One thing is for sure, I expect plenty of fireworks to result as these are two of the most highly skilled players in the game. When these teams last met in Toronto it was a 6-4 Oilers win. While we may not again see double digits in goals tonight I certainly do expect at least 7 goals. Edmonton coach Dave Tippett has been questioning the compete level of his team but has also said they were at their best in their 5-2 win. Keep in mind, in their three losses they have allowed 3 goals once and 5 goals twice. The issue for Edmonton is questionable goaltending and defense. That said, even with a high compete level you see the biggest benefit for the Oilers on the offensive end with guys like McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. I do expect Edmonton's compete level to be very high in this game as it is a high-profile match-up that will bring out the best in both hockey clubs. The result will be plenty of goals as I expect the Oilers to respond after being held to just 1 goal by Montreal in each of their two games with the Canadiens. So Edmonton responds here in the offensive zone but I don't see them stopping the Leafs at the other end. Toronto has scored at least 3 goals in every single game this season and has averaged 3.7 goals in their 3 victories. The Maple Leafs will be on the attack early and often in this one on home ice but the Oilers respond as well. The result will likely be a 4-3 or 5-4 type game in my opinion. Very entertaining barnburner likely. 10* OVER 6.5 goals in Toronto

NBCSN Blowout Rout - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #69 Tuesday 10* Top Play Washington Capitals Money Line (+) @ Pittsburgh Penguins @ 7:05 ET - Sometimes you get extra value from unlikely sources and that is what happened here and I am stepping in. You see, this was the perfect spot to back Washington and yet the line moved toward Pittsburgh. Why did that happen? It is because Kasperi Kapanen is expected to make his season debut for the Penguins. However, did all those betting the Pens watch the game on Sunday? The thing is Pittsburgh was in a great spot there and gave a rather solid effort and managed to eke out a shootout win. But the fact is the Capitals spent much of that game looking like the better team and they are the more physical team and Alex Ovechkin had own that hit both sides of the cross bar before ringing out and that was late in regulation and likely would have given the Caps the win. Now after losing their first game of the season and getting another crack at a bitter rival, Washington will not be denied tonight in my opinion. The Capitals look hungry early this season. I like what I saw from them in Buffalo to open the season and I also feel the Penguins are still looking a little "off" early this season and they certainly weren't too impressive in dropping their first two games at Philly to open the season. So, all in all, this one is all about the situational value and we even get some extra money line return here due to Kapanen's expected return. I'll take the extra value as his presence isn't going to completely change everything else going on the ice right now for the Pens and I feel the Caps are looking like the better team at this early point in the season. 10* WASHINGTON

No Doubt Blowout Rout - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #49 Monday 10* Top Play Carolina Hurricanes Money Line (-) @ Nashville Predators @ 8:05 ET - Both of these hockey clubs are off games that were tied 2-2 in the 3rd period on Saturday. However, the difference is that the Hurricanes ended up on the wrong end of a 4-2 final and the Predators ended up on the right end of a 5-2 final. The fact is Carolina outshot the Red Wings by a double digit margin and could just as easily be 2-0 on the season and it would be Nashville (outshot by double digits by Blue Jackets) that would be 1-1. The fact that is not the case is what is helping to give us excellent line value here with the short road favorite. If Carolina was at home we would have a big price to lay. Instead, with them on the road, we get a good low price on the Hurricanes and I love this spot. The Canes came into the season expected to challenge Tampa Bay for the top spot in the Central Division while the Preds could very easily end up near the bottom of the division. Yes Nashville is better than Detroit and Chicago but not the rest of the division and the fact they managed to steal the game on Saturday from Columbus is merely serving to give us line value. Facing an undefeated team and coming off a loss, the Hurricanes know how important this game is and they will make the most of the opportunity. 10* CAROLINA

NHL Network Crusher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Sunday 10* Top Play OVER 6.5 goals in Florida Panthers vs Chicago Blackhawks @ 7:05 ET - the Blackhawks are 0-2 to start the season and they allowed 5 goals in each game, the Panthers first two games were cancelled due to covid issues impacting the Stars in Dallas, that means Florida is finally playing their season opener and we already saw early on that - for the most part - teams playing their first games saw plenty of goals scored and there were mistakes on the ice leading to more scoring opportunities than usual, the Panthers are known for solid offensive play but struggling in their own end, look for Chicago to fare much better in the goal-scoring department here as a result as they are no longer facing a tough TB defense nor a top goalie named Vasilevskiy, so the Hawks will see more scoring chances here and should cash them in but they are a young team with defensive and goaltending weaknesses and that should mean plenty of goals here, 10* OVER the total in Florida

Contrarian Crusher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #25 Saturday 10* Top Play Columbus Blue Jackets Money Line (+) @ Nashville Predators @ 8:05 ET - The Blue Jackets lost their opening game at Nashville Thursday by a 3-1 count but that game was 1-1 heading to the 3rd period. Now Columbus gets another shot at the Predators. I know these teams are considering roughly equal but I also like the Blue Jackets strong blue line with Seth Jones and Zach Werenski. The Jackets had a solid start in the game Thursday but really looked a bit listless in the 3rd period. That said, you know fiery coach John Tortorella is going to have the Blue Jackets ready to go here. Columbus, prior to their season-ending loss in Game 5 of their series with Tampa Bay (whom went on to win the Stanley Cup), had been on a 3-0 run when off a loss in which they were held to 1 goal or less. After scoring just 1 goal against the Preds Thursday, the Blue Jackets respond big here and get into the win column. 10* COLUMBUS

Situational Slaughter - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #12 Friday 10* Top Play Colorado Avalanche Money Line (-) vs St Louis Blues @ 9:05 ET - If you look at the final score of Wednesday's season opener (4-1) it looks like the Avalanche got blasted. Trust me, they did not. Did they get outplayed? Yes, they did. But this was still a 2-1 game in the 3rd period and I know the Avs will play much better tonight. They will respond on home ice coming off a loss in which too many players were guilty of expecting the win to come easily to them. That happens sometimes and teams need a wake up call and Colorado just got theirs. They are one of the top choices to win the Stanley Cup this season. Dating back to last season and including the playoffs, the Avalanche have won 6 of 7 (86%) when coming off a loss. The Blues are a high-quality team no doubt and they proved that again Wednesday. But the Avalanche got their wake up call and respond here and it won't be too many times this season that you can get the Avs in the -140 price range on home ice and coming off a loss. This is a value spot. Lay it. 10* COLORADO

Earliest Cash - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #53 Thursday 10* Top Play Washington Capitals Money Line (-) @ Buffalo Sabres @ 7:05 ET - This line has been steadily dropping this morning and I understand the move because Buffalo had a solid home record last season. However, all those home games were played in front of fans. Now the Sabres are playing for the first time since March as they did not play in the bubble games. For the Capitals, they played plenty of hockey right up until the latter half of August. That said, Washington is likely much more "game ready" and I also feel the Caps are very hungry entering this season. Alex Ovechkin certainly not getting any younger and they added Zdeno Chara from the Bruins who is turning 44 years old in March. These guys, among others, want to make one last push for a Stanley Cup. The Sabres, of course, don't have the normal fan support in the building so home ice will feel different plus lets not forget that the Capitals had one of the best road records in the NHL last season. Also, coming into this season the Caps (along with the Pens and Flyers) are expected to challenge the Bruins for the top spot in the East Division. As for the Sabres, they are projected to battle with the Devils to try and stay out of the basement. The point is that, particularly after the downward line move, we have excellent line value with the small road favorite in this one. 10* WASHINGTON

TV Game of the Week - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #42 Wednesday 10* Top Play Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (-) vs Pittsburgh Penguins @ 5:35 ET - The home team won all 3 games last season by a combined score of 14 to 4. Pittsburgh continues to show signs of being on the fade while Philadelphia responded very well with a new head coach last season and is on their way up. The Penguins brought in some new blood to add to guys like Crosby and Malkin but an important addition, Kasperi Kapanen, is out for this game due to quarantine requirements. Kapanen was possibly going to be on the top line for the Pens and his absence is a key one for sure. Overall, I like the fact that the Penguins are getting a little long in the tooth while the Flyers are up and coming. The long-time gap in this rivalry is certainly closing and note that Philadelphia goalie Carter Hart is known for struggling on the road but has been fantastic on home ice. When the Flyers faced the Penguins early in the season they were still adjusting to the coaching change. As the season went on, Philly turned into a well-oiled machine and that continued into the post-season as well whereas the Penguins got bounced by, of all teams, the Canadiens! About how Philly turned things on as the season went on, they also outshot the Penguins by a 60-39 combined count over their final two meetings. Tristan Jarry is now the undisputed #1 goalie for Pittsburgh but he was better at home than on the road last season. In away games, Jarry went 7-7 with a 2.66 GAA. The Flyers Hart went 20-3-2 with a 1.63 GAA in games at Wells Fargo Center last season while compiling a .943 save percentage! The home team gets the season-opening win in this one. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Game of the Week - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #1 Monday 10* Top Play Tampa Bay Lightning Money Line (-) vs Dallas Stars @ 8:05 ET - This is RARE for me but I like this situation so much I am willing to go with a Top Play 10* rating even though the money line is in the -160 range for this one. The fact is that the Stars are VERY lucky there even is a Game 6 in this series. Tampa Bay is the superior team, the healthier team, and they have the better goaltender. Don't get me wrong, I do respect the Stars and goalie Anton Khudobin but the fact remains that the Lightning have skated circles around Dallas for much of the last 4 games. Now, after giving up a late goal in Game 5 that allowed the Stars to tie it and then losing in the 2nd OT (after being the MUCH better team in the 1st OT), the Lighting respond in a big way here! The Bolts are a perfect 6-0 in this post-season when off a loss. Yes they will be without Stamkos again but they have been without him for much of this post-season. Just his presence on the ice (he also scored a goal) in the Game 4 win was big for TB but they played just fine in Game 5 without him. Their fault was in letting up a little bit. This time they won't let up and they will push harder and I am look for them to have a multiple goal lead heading into the final minute of this one. Do they then push it to a 3-goal lead with an empty-netter or do the Stars make it interesting by scoring one late goal with their netminder pulled? That question I can not answer but that is also why I am more comfortable playing the money line here. I don't want to get burned on the puck line late in the game. I do look for a convincing win here as the Lightning are a very dangerous team when highly motivated and they also feel cheated on the OT goal because it came on a power play goal on a penalty call that was not a penalty as the review showed. That said, it is payback time here from a very determined Lighting team. Look for goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy to have another big game for the Bolts here. He has been huge off a loss. 10* TAMPA BAY 

Scott “The Bulldog” Rickenbach NHL Rotation #28 Friday 10* Top Play Dallas Stars Money Line (+) vs Tampa Bay Lightning @ 8 ET – I certainly have all the respect in the world for this Tampa Bay team. However, I see Dallas stepping up big time in this key spot in this series. The Stars just got thrashed by the Lightning in Game 3 but they showed a lot of resilience in Game 2 after getting into a 3-0 hole. Then in Game 3 they outshot Dallas by a big margin in period one but ultimately made too many mistakes and took bad penalties. That allowed Tampa Bay to quickly garner momentum and then the Lightning came out and took it to the Stars in period two before they knew what hit them! Give the Lightning credit for sure but now look for Dallas to come out with a strong effort in this game just like they did in Game 1 of this series. The other two times the Stars lost back to back games in this post-season they have responded with a win each time. In fact, before getting hammered in Game 3 of this series after a Game 2 loss, the Stars had been 6-1 the last 7 times they entered a post-season game off a loss. In other words, don’t be surprised when they respond with a huge effort here. It won’t be easy, because Tampa Bay is a very strong team and playing very well, but I see the underdog getting it done in this one after being embarrassed in Game 3 Wednesday. 10* DALLAS

Game of the Week - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #21 Saturday 10* Top Play Dallas Stars Money Line (+) vs Tampa Bay Lightning @ 7:35 ET - While I certainly respect the Lightning the value is with the Stars in Game 1 of this series. Dallas has the rest edge as they have been off since Monday while the Lightning just wrapped up their series with the Islanders on Thursday and it took overtime to do it. That was the 2nd straight OT game for Tampa Bay and the prior one was a double overtime loss on Tuesday. Both those games (each requiring extra time) took place AFTER the Stars had dispatched of the Golden Knights with a win on Monday. The rest edge is big and Dallas goalie Anton Khudobin has been playing extremely well. That is not to say that Andrei Vasilevskiy has not also been playing well because he has. But with underdog value, a rested team, and getting strong goalie play - the variables favor the money line dog in this one as they have won 5 of their last 6 games. The fact that the Bolts are just 2-2 their last 4 with one of the wins requiring OT as well is a little bit of a dent in Tampa Bay's confidence level and also Brayden Point did not look 100 percent to me in the most recent game for the Lightning and they really need him to be healthy to be as strong as they can be. Advantage: Stars. 10* DALLAS

NBCSN Blowout Rout - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #5 Monday 10* Top Play Dallas Stars Money Line (+) vs Vegas Golden Knights @ 8:10 PM ET - Not only is Vegas now down 3-1 in this series, they have lost 5 of their last 7 games. Once touted as a powerhouse that was on its way to a Stanley Cup title, the Golden Knights are struggling with running into red hot goalies. First it was Thatcher Demko with the Canucks and now it is Anton Khudobin with the Stars. Vegas has been held to just 1.4 goals per game in their last 7 games and some of those were empty netters too! They are generating shots on goal but it doesn't matter if you're not getting truly quality scoring chances and Dallas has been limiting those for sure plus getting strong play from their defensemen around and in front of the net as well. The Stars have all the momentum, a very experienced coaching staff, and the Golden Knights continue to be over-priced. Yes they are in a must-win situation but that actually puts even more pressure on them. While Vegas is squeezing the sticks a little too tight, the Stars are playing confident and with no pressure on them. That combination makes for a very dangerous underdog and I'll again take the generous comeback price being offered here. 10* DALLAS

Daytime Dominator - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #3 Sunday 10* Top Play Tampa Bay Lightning Money Line (-) vs New York Islanders @ 3:10 ET - The Islanders got the upset win in Game 4 but the Lightning were without both Brayden Point and Alex Killorn. At least the latter (suspension) will be back this afternoon but the former (injury) might also return. Either way I look for Tampa Bay to respond off the loss. Andrei Vasilevskiy had won 6 in a row prior to that defeat and I fully expect he and the Bolts to bounce back after falling short. Note that the Lightning are 3-0 in this post-season when off a loss. New York is certainly a strong hockey club but this is a TB team on a mission ever since getting swept out of the first round of the playoffs last year. That followed a phenomenal regular season for the Bolts and they're really locked in since the post-season began. We get some line value here as the money line is in the -140 range and I won't hesitate in raising this one to my top play rating as a result. 10* TAMPA BAY

NBC Blowout Rout - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #2 Saturday 10* Top Play Dallas Stars Money Line (+) vs Vegas Golden Knights @ 8:10 ET - The Golden Knights, make no mistake about it, are a very good hockey club. However, they continue to be over-priced throughout this series. Dallas is already up 2 games to 1 but you would think based on pricing that Vegas has dominated the Stars and it is just not the case. Be careful looking at shots on goal as some of that is in relation to Dallas playing with the lead and not playing as aggressively as a result. Speaking of that, and here is the most important reason as to why there is no justification for Vegas to continually be in the -170 range in this season, but lets talk about playing with the lead in this series. Dallas scored early in Game 1 and won in a shutout. Then in Game 2 the Golden Knights erupted in the 2nd period and won in a shutout. Then in Game 3 the Stars never trailed the entire game. That means out of 9 periods of hockey Vegas has led for less than 2 periods. Does that sound like a team that should be so heavily favored? Another key thing I keep coming back to as well is that Vegas beat a 12th seeded Blackhawks team and a young Canucks team to get here. The Stars beat a tough Flames team and a highly-regarded Avalanche team to get here. This line is simply not priced right and with all the pressure on the Golden Knights now, I wouldn't be surprised to see the Stars be an extra dangerous foe in this one as they are playing without pressure now. In other words, upset alert...again! 10* DALLAS

Game of the Month - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #4 Friday 10* Top Play New York Islanders Money Line (+) vs Tampa Bay Lightning @ 8:10 ET - The Islanders, in a very tough travel (and lack of rest) situation, got blown out in Game 1. New York was a much better team in Game 2 and should have won the game. Unfortunately for the Islanders, and us, they allowed a goal with under 10 seconds to go in the game and fell 2-1 to fall into a 2-0 series hole. Despite that loss, the Isles had a lot to like about their game in Game 2 and I expect them to play a similar style in Game 3 and this time they will be rewarded for their efforts! A real key here is that the Lightning were already without Stamkos and now will be without Killorn (suspended) for this game. Additionally, Point might be out as well as he got hurt in Game 2 and never returned to the ice. His loss would be a big one for the Bolts and, even if he plays tonight, I doubt Point would be 100%. That said, all signs point to the Islanders getting the win here and getting back into this series and I am happy to take the healthy underdog price again here just like we successfully did last night with the Stars over the Knights, a game in which Dallas never trailed. Look for this one to play out in similar fashion (never trailing) but with hopefully a win in regulation this time around. Give me the big dog in this one. 10* NEW YORK ISLANDERS

NBC Sports Network Rout - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #40 Thursday 10* Top Play Dallas Stars Money Line (+) vs Vegas Golden Knights @ 8:10 ET - After getting shutout in Game 2 the Stars will respond in Game 3. You saw last night how teams at this level of the post-season respond off a loss with how well the Islanders played against the Lightning though they ultimately lost on a goal with less than 10 seconds to go in the game. The point is that there was zero value on Tampa Bay as a huge favorite last night even though some folks got fortunate with the late goal. Same case here. The Stars are a huge underdog even though they just beat a fantastic Avs team in the prior series and the Golden Knights played two much weaker teams, Blackhawks and Canucks, to make it this far. Don't get me wrong, Vegas is a good team. But they are also a public team and for them to be priced this high in this situation is just not right at all. The Stars as a sizable underdog and off a shutout loss are the play here all day every day. 10* DALLAS

Contrarian Crusher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #37 Wednesday 10* New York Islanders Money Line (+) vs Tampa Bay Lightning @ 8:10 ET - The Islanders got destroyed 8-2 in Game 1. I had the Lightning in that game as it was a very tough spot for the Isles and it paid off easily. Now, the markets are heavily favoring the Bolts in Game 2 but this situation actually favors New York. The Islanders are 4-1 in this post-season when off a loss. Not only that, those 4 wins came by a combined score of 16 to 2. Now I am not saying this will be a dominating win for the Islanders as I have a ton of respect for Tampa Bay and goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy. But, the fact is the Isles should respond off a very embarrassing loss in Game 1 and they are so well-coached. Yes, TB is well-coached too but after all the bounces went the way of the Lightning in Game 1, I expect a turn of events here in Game 2 and, without a shadow of a doubt, the money line value is clearly with the Islanders in this bounce back spot and being given a +150 payback opportunity. I'll take it! 10* NEW YORK ISLANDERS

NBCSN Blowout Rout - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #35 Tuesday 10* Top Play Dallas Stars Money Line (+) vs Vegas Golden Knights @ 8:10 ET - Everyone will be lining up on Vegas here off a loss. I am quite sure of that. Yet, like I mentioned in my Game 1 write-up on Dallas, the Stars faced tougher competition to get here. I am not trying to totally knock Vancouver but the Canucks were a young team and not as well coached as the teams that the Stars faced to get here. The Golden Knights also were fortunate in their first round match-up as they faced a Blackhawks team that was the #12 seed and barely even made it into the qualifying round of this unique 2020 playoff set-up. The point is that the Knights have really had to take a step up in level of competition for this series. The Stars beat a solid Flames team and an Avalanche team that I had predicted would win it all this season. In other words, Dallas has earned my respect. I am not saying Vegas is not a good team. Of course they are a very good team or they would not be here but what I am saying is that the Stars are not getting nearly enough respect from the betting markets here. I'll take the big dog that knows they played a sloppy 3rd period and were lucky to hang on for the 1-0 win. Of course Vegas is likely to respond here but Dallas had a lot of scoring opportunities in Game 1 that they did not cash and that was even with playing a bit of a "protective game" after getting the early 1-0 lead. The Stars score plenty more here and keep the Golden Knights on their heels in this one. 10* DALLAS

NBCSN Blowout Rout - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #34 Monday 10* Top Play Tampa Bay Lightning Money Line (-) vs New York Islanders @ 8 ET - Huge edges for the Bolts here. They are much more rested as they had 6 days off while the Islanders just finished up an epic battle in a 7-game series with the Flyers that saw 3 games go to overtime. With the conference finals being played in Edmonton, the Isles had to immediately get in a plane and fly west as they had hardly any time to enjoy their big win over Philadelphia in Toronto on Saturday night. Not only is Tampa Bay more rested and holding the travel edge (they arrived to Alberta well before the Islanders did), I also like other edges here for the Lightning. Andrei Vasilevskiy has been fantastic between the pipes whereas New York's #1 netminder Semyon Varlamov has been shaky at times. I know Thomas Greiss got the shutout win over the Flyers in Game 7 for the Isles but he is the normal #2 guy for a reason. The point is that the Lightning have a significant goalie edge here and with the rest edge and the fact that the Bolts have won 4 straight games and beat a tough Boston team convincingly, I am willing to lay the price here. Rare for me to lay much of a price, especially for a top play, but just too many edges in this situation for Game One! 10* TAMPA BAY 

NBC Blowout Rout - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #35 Sunday 10* Top Play Dallas Stars Money Line (+) vs Vegas Golden Knights @ 8 ET - Vegas faced two teams to reach this point - the Canucks and the Blackhawks. Dallas faced two teams to reach this point - the Avalanche and the Flames. What is noteworthy about this is that both teams that the Golden Knights faced finished with less points in the regular season than the two teams that the Stars faced. Not only that but the Blackhawks were a 12th seed so they were the lowest seed that ended up making the post-season out west. As for the Avalanche that was a team that many (including me) predicted would be playing for the Stanley Cup. So the point is that I feel the Stars have faced a tougher road here and the Golden Knights have been fortunate with their match-ups. Vegas faced a Chicago team coached by a 35-year old and a Canucks team coached by a 49-year old. Now they face a Stars staff with plenty of coaching experience including interim head coach Rick Bowness whom is 65 years old and has been coaching since 1989 which means, yes, the year 2020 marks the 5th decade in which he has coached. Dallas has shown a lot of firepower in the offensive zone in this post-season and will test the Knights in a way that Chicago and Vancouver simply weren't capable of. This is the best team by far that the Golden Knights have faced in the post-season while I am not sure the reverse is true at all. The Avalanche team, even with injuries, was a very high-powered team that the Stars just got past. I think all that experience serves them well immediately in Game 1 before Vegas can make some adjustments as this series on. I am happy to grab the big dog value here with the Stars. 10* DALLAS

Situational Slaughter - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #6 Saturday 10* Top Play Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (+) vs New York Islanders @ 7:30 ET - Seeing guys like Kevin Hayes, Claude Giroux, and Travis Konecny getting on the scoresheet in recent games is big news for the Flyers. Throughout this post-season Philadelphia has been winning on the strength of team depth and the goaltending of Carter Hart. However, along the way, much has been made of the lack of production for some of the big name guys for Philadelphia and that includes James van Riemsdyk whom also has gotten in on the scoring in recent games too. All of this has helped lead the way to a Flyers comeback from a 3-1 series deficit to tie the series at 3. With yesterday's losses for the Avalanche and the Canucks, neither of the other teams that did the same thing the Flyers have done were able to complete the comeback and advance to the conference finals. However, Philadelphia's head coach Alain Vigneault has already done this multiple times in his career and I look for him again help lead the way to a series comeback from a 3-1 deficit to advance to the next round. Yes the Flyers were heavily outshot in Game 6 but they played much better than what that lone stat (shots on goal) would lead you to believe. The Islanders haven't made it to the conference finals in 27 years. The Flyers rallied all the way back from a 3-0 series deficit to oust the Bruins in 2010. That was the same year Philly lost in the Stanley Cup Finals to the Blackhawks. History is on the side of the Flyers here but I also like the boost they have received from the return of Oskar Lindblom to the ice. He has a rare form of bone cancer (Ewing's sarcoma) and he and the Flyers go all out again here in Game 7. They could have Sean Couturier back from injury as well. I am actually expecting that but even if he does not return I still see all the value with the confident Flyers here who have proven throughout this series that they can win the tightest of games. Give me the underdog here! 10* PHILADELPHIA

Afternoon Annihilation - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #4 Friday 10* Top Play Colorado Avalanche Money Line (-) vs Dallas Stars @ 4 ET - When you let a team hang around in a playoff series, no matter the sport, it can sometimes come back to bite you! This is particularly true in the NHL. A hot goalie and momentum go a long way toward deciding hockey games and we have now seen that hold true in no less than 3 of the 4 series going on right now in the NHL. We're going to see three NHL Game 7's which is a beautiful thing to see. The Golden Knights have played well but ran into a red hot goalie (Thatcher Demko) and that series has gone from 3-1 to 3-3. The Islanders have played well but ran into a very resilient Flyers team playing with a ton of emotion and that series has gone from 3-1 to 3-3. Then you have this one where all you hear people talk about is the fact that the Avalanche were a cup favorite but now they have too many injuries. Looks like the Colorado players are having nothing to do with talk like that! They have rallied the troops and this is yet another series that has gone from 3-1 to 3-3. Michael Hutchinson has been a key between the pipes because of the injuries to the top two Avs goalies. I am aware of the Gabriel Landeskog injury for the Avs but his linemates on the top line including Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen and there has simply been no quit in this team no matter whom is on the ice. MacKinnon is having a post-season for the ages but is 0-2 in Game 7's and can't wait to change that here. Look for that to happen. The Avs advance as the Stars, still shaken from blowing a 3-1 series lead, fall short again this year just like they did last year in a similar situation against the Blues. The Avalanche simply look like the better team, even with injuries, as this series has gone on. The Avs are relentlless and have too much firepower for Dallas to put away. 10* COLORADO

Game of the Week - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #25 Thursday 10* Top Play Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (+) vs New York Islanders @ 7:00 ET - While there are question marks about whether or not Barzal will play for Islanders in this one and whether or not Couturier will play for the Flyers in this one, I want to get this play out early for everyone. The fact is I expect Barzal to play and Couturier not to play but I still like the Flyers in this one. If Barzal was announced as being out and Couturier being in than so much the better. But the fact is momentum and having your big guys going strong is a key in the hockey post-season and the Flyers check the boxes on both of those things heading into this game. In Game 5 they finally saw Giroux score a goal (he also picked up his 6th assist on the GW OT goal no less!) plus van Riemsdyk also scored a goal. Coach Vigneault is pushing all the right buttons with these Flyers and though Konecny has not scored a goal he picked up a pair of assists in the win. Coming back from a 3-1 deficit to force a Game 7 is not easy but coach Vigneault has let teams to series wins multiple times after a 3-1 series hole. Also, if you don't believe momentum and getting the big guys going is key in a series you're not paying attention to the series out in Edmonton where Colorado got a 4-1 win last night to force a Game 7 after being down 3-1 in that series with Dallas. Look for the Flyers to also force a Game 7 by getting the big win tonight. The Islanders are a great team for sure and very well coached but Philly has the momentum here and unlike the Avalanche (down to a 3rd string goalie no less!) the Flyers have a true #1 netminder (Hart) healthy and ready to go here tonight. I love Game 7's in NHL and this series absolutely appears destined for a Game 7 after the way the Flyers responded twice in Game 5 to show how resilient they are. They gave up the first goal of the game just one minute into to the game to fall into a hole. They then allowed the final two goals of regulation to blow a 3-1 lead. They still win in OT. That is resilience with a capital R and this Flyers team is firing on all cylinders right now with or without Couturier. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Situational Slaughter - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #19 Wednesday 10* Top Play Colorado Avalanche Money Line (-) vs Dallas Stars @ 8 ET - What happens when a team has a chance to put a team away and then doesn't? We're about to find out. The Avalanche were down 3-1 in this series against the Stars but then absolutely blitzed Dallas and scored the first 5 goals of Game 5 and rolled to a 6-3 win. It will again be Michael Hutchinson between the pipes for Colorado tonight. Yes he is the #3 goalie but he is behind two solid netminders in Grubauer and Francouz - each of which are dealing with injuries. 2 of the 3 goals Hutchinson allowed were on power plays for Dallas and the reality is he played quite well. Also, dating back to the regular season, he has allowed just 4 goals on the last 55 shots he has faced. Keep in mind, Hutchinson is again likely to get plenty of goal support here too as the Avalanche have averaged 5 goals per game over the last 3 games. Also, the Avs finished off the Coyotes with identical 7-1 wins in each of the last two games of the series. I am not saying the same thing happens in this series but I am saying that the Avalanche are a very strong team and will force a Game 7 in my opinion. Give the Stars credit for getting the 3-1 series lead but now all the momentum is with Colorado and Dallas coach likely regrets making a goalie change at a crucial juncture in the series. He went to Ben Bishop in Game 5 as he was healthy enough to play again but he got absolutely blitzed and the Avs now have plenty of confidence against both of the Stars netminders. This Avalanche team is so dangerous in the offensive zone and I again don't see them being denied in this one. Just too much firepower and the confidence of Dallas is absolutely shaken now. I don't care what they say. They know they let a great chance slip away and have given the Avs plenty of hope! 10* COLORADO

Contrarian Crusher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #17 Tuesday 10* Top Play Vancouver Canucks Puck Line +1.5 goals -130 vs Vegas Golden Knights @ 9:45 ET - I am well aware of the fact that there has not yet been a game decided by a 1-goal margin in this series. But I feel strongly we see a tight one in the Edmonton bubble tonight. The Canucks aren't going away without a fight and they are fired up after taking a 3-2 lead to the 3rd period against the Golden Knights on Sunday only to ultimately lose. Vancouver gave up 3 goals in a span of about 6 minutes of the first half of the final period in Game 4 and it is payback time here. I have tremendous respect for the Knights however and that is why I wouldn't be surprised to see an overtime game like we saw last night when the Bruins were facing elimination against the Lightning. Boston forced OT before finally losing to Tampa Bay in the 2nd overtime. In this case, of course would be nice to have a big money line payback on the Canucks should they win outright but I would not be surprised if they play a fantastic game and yet ultimately fall just short in a one-goal loss as Vegas looks to close them out and move on. Vancouver had won 5 of 6 when coming off a loss but that was entering Game 4. After that defeat, the Canucks are now 5-2 the last 7 times when entering a game off a loss. Look for Vancouver to bounce back here and note that the Golden Knights entered Sunday's game having gone just 4-3 the last 7 times they were off a win by a multiple goal margin and 3 of those 4 wins came by just a single goal including 2 in overtime. In other words, if you just played the puck line +1.5 goals against Vegas in those 7 games you went 6-1 with your bets! Of course that angle is now 6-2 after the Golden Knights 2-goal win in Game 4 but I'll gladly take that 75% angle with the Canucks here as I don't see them exiting this series quietly. 10* VANCOUVER Puck Line +1.5 goals -130

Contrarian Crusher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #12 Monday 10* Top Play Tampa Bay Lightning Money Line (-) vs Boston Bruins @ 7 ET - Many will be looking the way of the Bruins here. After all, they have lost 3 straight games and are trying to avoid elimination and this is practically the same Boston roster that was one win away from winning it all last season! In typical contrarian fashion I am on the other side here. I look for Tampa Bay to make it 4 in a row and not even let the Bruins sniff the potential of getting back in this series. By the way, the Bolts are 7-0 in terms of winning a series when they hold a 3-1 lead. In this case, I look for them to get the close out victory tonight. The Lightning have won the last two games by a combined 10-2 score and a key has been Jaroslav Halak, rather than Tuukka Rask, being between the pipes for Boston. This is not a knock on Halak as normally he is a solid goalie but, the fact is, he is not playing that well right now and neither are his Bruins teammates in front of him! Conversely, Andrei Vasilevskiy has been playing exceptionally well between the pipes for TB at the other end and I fully expect that to continue tonight. This Tampa Bay team is so hungry this season after what happened last year when they had an absolutely stellar regular season but then got swept out of the post-season in the first round! This Lightning team absolutely looks like a team on a mission in these playoffs and we see that continued inspired effort again Monday! 10* TAMPA BAY

Game of the Week (Eastern Conference) - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #7 Sunday 10* Top Play Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (+) vs New York Islanders @ 8 ET - The Flyers performance in Game 3 wasn't nearly as bad as the final score would lead one to believe. Philadelphia gave up a very late goal - 5 seconds left in second period - and that really hurt them as that is a killer for a team. The fact is the Islanders are a very tough team and this is likely to be a tight back and forth series. On that note, I really like the Flyers to respond off the loss with a huge effort here to get the win. They have not had a losing streak since early January! Dating back to the regular season and including this post-season, Philadelphia is 11-0 when coming off a loss. Look for the Flyers to improve on that mark here after being shut down in Game 3 where the second period did them in after they looked so sharp in the first period. This is a very good Philly team and they also hold the "back to back" edge in my opinion. In terms of the goalie match-up, if it is again Varlamov and Hart in this back to back note that Hart is 10 years younger than Varlamov and may respond better physically. If the teams go to the back-ups I like Elliott (12-5-2 away from Philly this season) over Greiss (7-6-2 away from home this season). Just a much better overall team effort expected in this one for the top-seeded team as they continue to show great resilience improving to 12-0 last dozen times they have been off a loss! 10* PHILADELPHIA

PA Insider - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #25 Saturday 10* Top Play Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (-) vs New York Islanders @ 7 ET - NOTE: This original write-up was based on the game being played Thursday evening. The game is now being played Saturday at 7 ET. I still am going with the same selection as a Top Play. Here is the original write-up: The Flyers built a 3-0 lead in yesterday's game and were still up 3-1 halfway through the final period and up 3-2 with about 2 minutes left. They then let the game slip away as Islanders tied it at 3 plus got a 2 minute power play to close out regulation. If the Isles had scored on that power play or been the club to score in overtime, the Flyers season would have likely been over. Coming back from a 2-0 deficit after a completely demoralizing loss is a lot to ask. Instead, the mood on this Philadelphia hockey club is very upbeat as they got the 4-3 OT win with a Myers goal just a couple minutes into OT. The Flyers, dating back to the regular season, have now won 17 of their past 21 games. They also hold a goalie edge for this back to back situation. It should be Varlamov and Hart in this one but lets talk about all 4 goalies because of the back to back. Greiss came in yesterday for the Islanders after Varlamov allowed 3 goals in 15 minutes. Greiss, 34 years old and having not played much at all since the spring, did play well but now this would be a back to back for a guy just coming back to live big game action. Varlamov, after his long playoff shutout streak, allowed 3 goals in 15 minutes and the Flyers are now "in his head" a little. As for Hart, he is only 22 years old and playing in a back to back wouldn't bother him in the least. If the Flyers call on their back-up, Elliott, he is a veteran player like Greiss. However, unlike Greiss, he is fresh because he did not play yesterday. Two evenly matched teams but the Flyers have momentum and goaltending on their side in this crucial swing game in this 1-1 series. Also, Philly coach Vigneault tweaked some of the lines yesterday and it paid immediate dividends. More of the same here. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Game of the Year - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #13 Wednesday 10* Top Play Colorado Avalanche Money Line (-) vs Dallas Stars @ 10:30 ET - After receiving a wake-up call in Game 1 and losing badly to the Stars, the Avalanche needed to respond and they did. The problem however is the response only lasted half the game. The Avs were up 2-0 about midway through the game and then all of the sudden found themselves on the wrong end of a 2-man advantage. The last thing you want to do when you have a 2-goal lead and are looking to even a series up is to end up with two of your men in the penalty box! The rest is, as they say, history now. But the fact that the team I feel has a great shot at winning the cup this season is now in a 2-0 hole in this series makes this a fantastic spot for backing them. Yes the Stars have momentum as the puck continues to bounce their way. Give them credit but, again, Colorado let that game slip away and sometimes learning experiences come at a high price. In this case, the Avalanche let that game get away from them and it has put them in a 2-0 hole. That said, it is not too late to respond and I know the kind of effort we're going to get from this highly talented, exceptionally skilled Avalanche team in this one. Also, look for the Avs to be more grittier in this game. Even though this is not an elimination game, teams very rarely come back from a 3-0 deficit so this is about as close to a win or go home game as there is. Colorado needs more hitting and more blocked shots and, at the same time, I expect them to again heavily outshoot the Stars like they did in Game 2 (40-27 edge). Adding up all the factors and knowing that Pavel Francouz played a much better game in net than the final score would lead you to believe, I am willing to lay the moderate price (-140 range) on the Avalanche in this one and expect them to play their best game of the post-season. 10* COLORADO

Contrarian Crusher - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #6 Tuesday 10* Top Play Tampa Bay Lightning Money Line (-) vs Boston Bruins @ 7 ET - The Lightning got down early against Boston in Game 1 but they fought their way through that and looked strong the rest of the way nearly rallying all the way back from a 3-0 deficit. After falling short 3-2, but infused with confidence, the Bolts will be ready to take it to the Bruins in Game 2. The Lightning are built more for the post-season than they were last year. They match up much better with Boston now and that was part of the reason that Tampa Bay took 3 of 4 regular season meetings. Game One of this series swung on a couple of big plays. One was the Bruins getting on the board with only a minute left to go in the first period. Then a power play early in the 2nd period led to their 2nd goal. This is not to take anything away from Boston but those key momentum swings were game changers. The Lightning looked much stronger and confident as the game went on and they'll carry that momentum into Game 2. I also still like Bolts goalie Vasilevskiy over Bruins goalie Jaroslav Halak. Though Halak is solid there is a reason he is the #2 behind Tuukka Rask whom now has departed the bubble. The Lightning come out flying and even this one up. 10* TAMPA BAY

PA Insider - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #2 Monday 10* Top Play Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (-) vs New York Islanders @ 7 ET - This should be a fantastic series. It is always tough to gauge teams coming into a new series because the match-ups are different and you have to factor in the prior series. In this case, I feel that edge goes to the Flyers. The Islanders are a great team and I am expecting this to be a fierce battle in this series but Game 1 sets up well for the Isles to fall short. They are coached by Barry Trotz and he is the former Capitals coach that took Washington to the Stanley Cup title win over Vegas in 2018. Now just two years later he got a chance to meet his team in the post-season and his Islanders dominated them in the 4-1 series win and it ended up getting Caps coach (and his former assistant coach) Todd Reirden fired. That was an emotional series win not only for Trotz but also his players because the players know how bad Trotz wanted that. Can they immediately handle now facing a tough Flyers team in Game 1 of this series? I think this is the one game in this series that the Flyers should dominate. They get Niskanen back, they are confident after knocking off a scrappy Canadiens team that had upset the Penguins. Yes those Penguins that include star players like Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. The point is that the Flyers got tested by the Habs and it was good for them to build up some playoff mettle as young goalie Carter Hart continues to play as a much more experienced player than you would expect with his young age. Philly got their power play going late in the series with Montreal and that also is a confidence boost heading into this tough post-season match-up. Yes, the Islanders won all 3 regular season meetings but those were a long long time ago when the Flyers were still adjusting to new coach Alain Vigneault way back in November! Keep in mind, dating back to regular season and including the round robin action under this bubble too, the Flyers have won 16 of their last 19 games! 10* PHILADELPHIA

Situational Slaughter - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #84 Sunday 10* Top Play Tampa Bay Lightning Money Line (-) vs Boston Bruins @ 8 ET - I'll take Lightning #1 goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy over Bruins goalie Jaroslav Halak. Yes, I know Halak is more of a #1b option rather than a true #2 but Tuukka Rask is the normal starter in Boston for a reason. Halak let in a few soft goals against the Hurricanes and he is going to be tested even more here by Tampa Bay. The Bolts are a team on a mission after getting swept out of the playoffs in the first round last year. That followed a record-setting regular season for them and the Lightning enter this series a very focused team after knocking off a tough Columbus team. Yes the Bruins ultimately looked good in getting past Carolina but the monumental collapse of the Hurricanes in a game they led 3-0 was something they never bounced back from. The Canes were a disappointment in blowing that game which would have tied the series at 2 games apiece. Keep in mind, Carolina never should have lost Game 1 either as the Bruins had a goal count that never should have counted and that is why the game eventually went to OT instead of being a 3-2 Canes win. The point is that the Bruins won a double-OT game plus came back from a 3-0 third period deficit. Give them credit for that but they were facing a Carolina team that has some issues. Now they face a Lightning team with no real issues other than still waiting on Stamkos to come back but they have been (and are use to) playing without him. I also like the fact that the Bolts have experienced goaltending behind Vasilevskiy. Conversely, the Bruins back-up (because of Rask leaving the bubble) is a #3 goalie with zero NHL experience. If Halak gets hurt or struggles Boston has a significant issue. The Lightning now have the physicality to match up with the Bruins and they take Game 1 here to set the tone for this series. 10* TAMPA BAY

Situational Shocker - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #81 Saturday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Colorado Avalanche vs Dallas Stars @ 8 ET - I am calling this one a shocker because when you think of playoff hockey you think of tight, low-scoring games as a general rule. However, in this case you have a Dallas team that does its best when skating fast and allowing guys like Tyler Seguin to open things up and create in the offensive zone. As for the Avalanche, they are a very fast and skilled team and showed that in knocking off the Coyotes by identical 7-1 scores in each of the final two games of their first round series. As for the Stars, how about scoring 7 straight times to win 7-3 after allowing the first three goals against the Flames in that game? The fact is both these hockey clubs are very confident in the offensive zone right now and we're getting line value because all 4 regular season meetings between these teams (as well as the round robin game too) totaled 5 or less goals. That said, how can this total be posted at 5.5 goals by the odds makers? Exactly! It is going over folks. The Stars have won 4 of their last 5 games and scored an average of 4.8 goals per game in those 4 wins. The Avalanche are averaging 4.1 goals per game their last 7 games. Look for a wild one here. I know that is not the norm in playoff hockey but this is a situational play. 10* OVER the total in Colorado

Game of the Month - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #15 Friday 10* Top Play Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (-) vs Montreal Canadiens @ 7 ET - It has been feast or famine for the Canadiens so far in this series and I expect the latter to be the result in Friday's Game 6. Yes the Habs exploded for 5 goals in a wild one in Game 5 (and also in Game 2 when the Flyers didn't show up and Montreal was playing for their coach - heart surgery) but in the other 3 games the Canadiens not only lost but they scored a TOTAL of 1 goal in those 3 games! Flyers netminder Carter Hart has a knack for bouncing back off poor outings and he did not look good on Wednesday. That said, the young goalie is cool under pressure and had come up with back to back shutouts in Games 3 and 4 after that ugly Game 2 where his teammates hung him out to dry. Speaking of teammates and how they react around Hart, the fact that Montreal's Suzuki tapped Hart on the helmet after the Habs scored their 2nd goal to tie the game on Wednesday will be accounted for. I don't wish ill will upon anyone but Suzuki has a bullseye on his back for this game. Already the Flyers Niskanen (suspended for this game) broke the jaw of Gallagher (one of Montreal's best players) after the Suzuki incident. Gallagher is now out for the rest of the post-season (which I suspected the end would have been coming tonight anyway) and they will struggle to overcome his absence. He is a speedy player and an agitator on the ice. The Canadiens will miss him more than the Flyers will miss Niskanen although certainly the D-man is an important player for Philly. In terms of coaching the Flyers bench guys have the most combined experience of any coaching staff in the NHL. They hold a huge edge over Montreal with Claude Julien still recovering from heart surgery and with an assistant coach now handling coaching duties for the Canadiens. Philly also got their power play going in Wednesday's Game 5 and that is a key confidence boost for this team. They earned their #1 seed and, dating back to the regular season, had won 15 of their last 17 games prior to the Game 5 loss. Payback time here and don't be surprised if someone taps Suzuki on the head in the handshake line after this game is over as the Flyers send the Canadiens packing. Big mistake on Suzuki's part and he and his teammates will pay the price after lighting a fire under the Flyers for this game 6. Philly will be buzzing all over the ice for this one and will have their skating legs going at 110%! 10* PHILADELPHIA

Total of the Week - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #5 Thursday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Washington Capitals vs New York Islanders @ 8 ET – The Capitals Alex Ovechkin got going in their Game 4 win Tuesday and that is a good sign for Washington. It is always toughest to get that 4th win in a series and the Islanders know it. That said, expect a much better game from the Isles here but the Capitals now have confidence again and this is particularly true in the offensive zone. That should lead to plenty of goals in this one. We have seen a lot of high-scoring games in potential elimination games in recent days. When teams are putting it all on the line to save their season the scoring has gone up in most of those contests. 3 of the 4 games in this series have totaled 5 or more goals and, especially given the dynamics of this situation, I expect that this one will too. Starting with Blackhawks/Golden Knights Tuesday night, 4 of the 5 games in which a team was facing elimination totaled 7 or more goals. I expect a 4-3 type game here and will grab the value with this total at 5 goals. 10* OVER the total in Washington

Total Dominator - Scott "The Bulldog" Rickenbach NHL Rotation #73 Wednesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Colorado Avalanche vs Arizona Coyotes @ 5:30 ET - I absolutely expect a better "compete level" from the Coyotes here in Game 5 after they got thoroughly embarrassed in the 7-1 loss in Game 4 on Monday. However, the only way Arizona is going to compete is to take some chances to open things up offensively because you know the Avalanche are going to get theirs! Colorado is a high-octane very dangerous team and they were already clicking even in the Game 3 loss. That was a 4-2 loss for the Avs but they fired 51 shots on goal. Now that they have finally broken through big-time against Coyotes goalie Darcy Keumper, the floodgates are truly wide open. Look for the Avalanche to keep coming in waves in this one just like they did in the blowout win in Game 4. The Avs are averaging nearly 4 goals per game in this series and the Coyotes are averaging 2.3 goals per game the last 3 games. We can expect at least a 4-2 type game here in my opinion and the odds maker have moved the total from a 5 (prior games) to a 5.5 (this game) with good reason. Like I said, the floodgates are now open for this ultra dangerous Avalanche team and, at the other end, the Coyotes will have to take chances and try to create some good scoring chances. It is their only chance to possibly keep up in this game and have a chance to spring the upset. The over 5.5 is available at a solid plus money price so this is another added benefit here and I am going with a top play here. 10* OVER the total in Colorado

Total Dominator - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #67 Tuesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Dallas Stars vs Calgary Flames @ 5:30 ET - Contrasting styles in this match-up and it is leading to more offense as the series has gone on. Two of the last three games have totaled 9 goals. The Stars got a wake-up call with the 2-0 shutout loss in Game 3 and they won't look back now. I am not saying they win this game but I am just saying that the 5-4 OT win in Game 4 showed them how they need to play. They can't match the physical play and size of the Flames but they can try and play faster and out-skate them. We saw flashes of that in Game 4 and it helped lead to a game with plenty of goals. The problem for the Stars is that they have had to use big players like Oleksiak for extended minutes to try and match the size of the Flames but he committed multiple penalties that hurt the Stars in Game 4 and led to power play goals for Calgary. Also, he made questionable decisions with the puck in my opinion. This is leading to turnovers and we're seeing a lot of great scoring chances for each club in this one because of the way they are playing. It is certainly not tight, defensive-minded hockey. It is more like first one to score 5 goals wins. In all seriousness, the Flames have averaged 4 goals per game their past 6 games and the Stars have their offense back (and confidence back) thanks to winning 2 of the last 3 games by a score of 5-4. With this total at 5 goals for this one I feel we have solid value on the over. I feel there is plenty of justification for this total to have moved to a 5.5 and it hasn't. Great line value as a result and I am expecting a 4-3 type game. 10* OVER the total in Dallas

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #58 Monday 10* Top Play Carolina Hurricanes Money Line (+) vs Boston Bruins @ 8 ET - Look for a rally the troops game for Carolina as everyone will step up their game here after the Andrei Svechnikov injury in Game 3. He had a goal and assist in the Hurricanes Game 2 win. Now, after losing Game 3, it will be payback time for the Hurricanes. Keep in mind, Carolina should have won Game 1. The Bruins had a goal count in regulation that never should have counted. Had it not counted, the game would have never ended up in OT. Instead it would have been a 3-2 Canes win in regulation. The fact is these are 2 very evenly matched teams and I like getting the underdog value with a Hurricanes club looking to respond big off a loss and show a response after the Svechnikov injury. Additionally, I know that Jaroslav Halak is a solid netminder for the Bruins but he didn't have time to think too much when #1 goalie Tuukka Rask made his announcement that he was leaving the bubble just prior to Game 3. Now, with plenty of time for Halak to ponder everything and realize he is the #1 and Rask is gone, he might be more easily "rattled" by Hurricanes shots in this one and I am sure the Canes will be coming in waves in this must win game. They can't afford to go down 3-1 in this series. 10* CAROLINA

PA Insider - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #49 Sunday 10* Top Play Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (-) vs Montreal Canadiens @ 8 ET - The Canadiens gave a huge effort in Game 2 to even this series up as they played inspired hockey right from the first drop of the puck. Their head coach Claude Julien was in the hospital and is now recovering from heart surgery and you have to give Montreal credit for a great effort in Game 2. However, not only did the Habs win that game they "showed up" the Flyers a little bit as assistant coach Kirk Muller (filling in for Julien) put his top power play unit on the ice late in the game and with the Canadiens already up 5-0. This did not go unnoticed by the Flyers and I already would have expected a huge response from Philly in Game 3 but that fact only strengthens their resolve. Keep in mind Philly was one of the hottest teams down the stretch in the regular season and the Canadiens were quite cold late in the season. Yes the Habs have a great goalie in Carey Price but the Flyers goalie Carter Hart plays like he is much older than his young age and is certainly showing signs, Game 2 notwithstanding, that he is going to be a great goalie in this league. Look for Hart and the Flyers to bounce back strong in Game 2. We're getting great line value here as a line that was closer to the -160 range in prior games is now down in the -130 range. The Flyers didn't show up in Game 2. They will be there in Game 3 and anybody that looks up and down the roster of skaters on these teams knows that the Flyers are the better team in this series. Yes, Montreal having Price in goal is big but the Flyers Hart has been fantastic in key games this season and this is another key game. Philly beat Price in Game 1 and I don't see them going down 2-1 in this series against a 12 seed! Yes the Habs got past the Penguins but Malkin looked out of sorts in that series and the Pens just aren't what they use to be. Philly earned the #1 seed with a strong regular season and then fantastic play in the round robin. One game doesn't change all that. It is payback time here. Head coach Alain Vigneault and the Flyers can't wait for their chance at redemption and they'll make it count here. Look for some of Philly's top guys to get going in this series. It shows how deep that Philly is that they have played well (up until Friday) in this post-season and yet many of their big guns have been held off the scoresheet. I look for that to change here. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Total of the Week - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #37 Saturday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Arizona Coyotes vs Colorado Avalanche @ 3 ET - No excuse for yesterday's game not to go over the total. The game was tied 2-2 after two periods. The Coyotes played much better in the offensive zone after being shutout in Game One. The Avalanche continued to show how dangerous they are with high skill and speed at the forward position. Yet missing a couple shots at the empty net ultimately resulted in a game that ended 3-2. I especially like this situation because it is a back to back and is a day game too. This puts extra stress because the Coyotes back-up goalie Raanta just now returned from injury and Kuemper is likely to get the start in this back to back spot. As strong as he has been this is still a tough situation for a netminder. The Avalanche have mostly used Grubauer throughout this post-season so now he goes in the 2nd game of a back to back or its Francouz that gets the start (likely) and he could show some rust. When you consider these factors and yesterday's tough result for over players plus the fact that the over 5.5 is available at +120 here, you have great value on the over in this spot. Arizona is down 2-0 in the series and will continue to push for more offensive zone time here even if it means more risk of trouble in their own defensive zone. Coyotes desperate for a win and the Avalanche want to play a more aggressive game after they were held in check for stretches in Game 2. Remember that in Game 1 the Avs had plenty of shots before finally breaking through. I expect this game to be their true breakout game as they score 4 or 5 goals and the Coyotes net at least a couple again. 10* OVER the total in Arizona

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #31 Friday 10* Top Play Washington Capitals Money Line (-) vs New York Islanders @ 8 ET - Washington let game one slip away as they blew a 2-0 lead. It was good that the Capitals had John Carson back on the ice but now they've lost Nicklas Backstrom for game two courtesy of a big hit from the Islanders Anders Lee that certainly did not go unnoticed by Tom Wilson and the Caps. The point is that this is a highly emotional series right off the bat as former Washington head coach Barry Trotz is now the head coach of the Islanders. These teams don't like each other at all and what I like about the Capitals in this spot is that they have been there done that! This is a team that won the Stanley Cup two years ago and knows how to handle adversity. That said, though the Islanders are a very strong team in their own right and may end up winning this series, I see the Capitals responding in a big way here in Game 2 and getting the win. Yes the series is early but to go into an 0-2 hole would be tough to climb out of and the Caps respond in a big way here in Game 2 after what happened in Game 1. I am speaking about the 2-0 lead being blown in the 4-2 loss and I am talking about Backstrom getting knocked out of the game. You are going to see a very focused effort from Alex Ovechkin and company in this one and they will not be denied. Take advantage of the low price being offered on this one. 10* WASHINGTON

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #21 Thursday 10* Top Play Carolina Hurricanes Money Line (+) vs Boston Bruins @ 8 ET - After Carolina (and yours truly) got ripped off by the Bruins in Game 1 yesterday, we'll look for payback here in Game 2. Yesterday's game should have ended 3-2 in regulation time as a Hurricanes win. The Bruins were given a goal they never deserved on a play where the officials said there was no hand pass because the goalie then froze the puck after the hand pass. But if he froze the puck after the hand pass how is that the Bruins were allowed to play a frozen puck and score a key goal? This is not just a disgruntled Hurricanes bettor telling you this. I am telling you that all analysts who watched that play and spoke about it agreed. It was an egregious error by the officiating crew. Basically an impossible goal to allow to be counted in a situation like that. You can only imagine how fired up Carolina is here and they can't wait for this shot at quick redemption here in Game 2 and are happy this is a back to back spot so they can get right back on the ice. The Hurricanes welcomed back Dougie Hamilton in Game 1 and could get Justin Williams and Sami Vatanen both back for Game 2 on Thursday night. After the tough loss in the 2nd overtime yesterday, the Hurricanes will respond in a big way in Game 2. Yes, Boston is a strong team but they only won 4 of their last 8 regular season games in regulation time and still have not won a game in regulation in the bubble in Toronto. Look for that streak to continue here (4 straight games without a regulation win) and this time the Bruins are on the losing end. The Hurricanes are ultra hungry after getting swept out of the post-season by the Bruins last year and then after a frustrating result in game one. 10* CAROLINA

NBC Sports Network Rout - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #21 Sunday 10* Top Play Columbus Blue Jackets vs Toronto Maple Leafs @ 8 ET - The winner of this game takes on the Lightning. Wouldn't it be perfect if that team ended up being the Blue Jackets? The same Columbus team that swept Tampa Bay out of the first round of the playoffs last year after the Bolts had a regular season performance for the ages. I believe this is precisely what we'll see here. Yes I am aware of the injury situation with Zach Werenski and Ryan Murray of the Jackets but I am pulling the trigger on a huge bounce back performance from Columbus here. After the unreal loss to Maple Leafs Friday (Blue Jackets were up 3-0 with 6 minutes to go), Columbus will be right back to work here. Coach Tortorella would have it no other way and you're going to see one of the most physical and gritty performances from a wounded dog then you'll ever see in an NHL post-season. I just don't see the Blue Jackets being denied in this bounce back spot after the Maple Leafs miracle win on Friday night. To me the Jackets are the better playoff-built hockey team in this series. I know Toronto is very talented but I like the grit of this Blue Jackets team and feel we've got tremendous line value here with them as a sizable dog in a series where no team has managed to win back to back games. Look for that trend to continue here. 10* COLUMBUS

Game of the Week - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #2 Saturday 10* Top Play Colorado Avalanche Money Line (-) vs Vegas Golden Knights @ 3 ET - The Avalanche are the best team in the NHL right now. They are healthier than they have been in a long, long time and it is amazing that MacKinnon, Landeskog, and Rantanen haven't scored yet in the first two round robin games and yet the Avs still have looked so good in winning the two games by a combined score of 6 to 1. In the regular season Colorado beat the Golden Knights by a combined score of 13 to 4 in their two meetings and those two games were at Vegas no less! Now these teams meet on neutral ice and the #1 seed for the upcoming NHL playoffs is on the line. I don't see the Avalanche being denied. They are the much better team. Yes, Vegas has also gone 2-0 in this round robin but they had a miracle rally against Dallas and then played a St Louis team that seemed surprisingly uninspired hockey. The Golden Knights, even with Blues seeming a bit sluggish, still had to rally from an early 2-0 hole and later still trailed 4-3 going to the 3rd period. Keep in mind they trailed the Stars by a count of 3-1 with about 10 minutes to go in that game before their miracle rally. The Vegas goaltending is suspect with Fleury struggling and Lehner now playing with his 4th club in 3 seasons! Lehner will get the start here and seems to have supplanted Fleury. The Avs have allowed just 1 goal so far in 2 games while the Golden Knights have allowed 7. Also, as shown in the regular season, the Avalanche have shown they pose some match-up problems for Vegas! 10* COLORADO

Rickenbach NHL Rotation #59 Friday 10* Top Play Edmonton Oilers Money Line (-) vs Chicago Blackhawks @ 6:45 ET - The Oilers lost on a very late goal in Game 3. It was no fault of the goalie on that play but one thing for certain is that neither team has been particularly sharp between the pipes as goals continue piling up through this series. I know that the Blackhawks have played very well in this series and have Edmonton on the edge of elimination. However, I just don't see it happening. After the Oilers got off the initial shock of an ugly 1st period stretch in Game 1 of this series, they have played well for long stretches and I like the coaching edge here in a crucial game as well. Edmonton is coached by Dave Tippett and Chicago is coached by Jeremy Colliton. Note that Tippett was playing in the NHL before Colliton was even born. Yes he is 24 years his senior and I look for Tippett to rally the troops here for the Oilers. Teams off a loss in this post-season have responded well for the most part with the lone exception being a flat Rangers team that was ousted by a Hurricanes team that was firing on all cylinders. So not including the Canes series or the round robin games, we're talking about only the 5-game series here, teams off a loss are 12-3 so far. That is an 80% cash in rate and I am more than willing to lay the fair price (-130 range) here with a desperate, more talented, and better coached Oilers team. 10* EDMONTON

NHL 10* Columbus Blue Jackets Money Line +135 - The Maple Leafs loss of defenseman Jake Muzzin for the remainder of this series is a big loss. He is arguably their best blue liner and is a playoff-tested veteran. His absence will be felt and, though I have been impressed with Leafs goalie Anderson and how well he has played I am wondering when the cracks will start to show and losing Muzzin could be the beginning of it. The Blue Jackets aren't happy with the Game 2 result but have to be happy being tied 1-1 heading into this Game 3 and the fact that the games have been tight and low-scoring. That plays right into the hands of Columbus. Also, they have a big experience factor edge in coaching with Tortorella over Keefe. Keep in mind the Leafs were red hot when Keefe first took over for the fired Babcock early this season but they then faded the rest of the season. I am still not sold on this Toronto team. They are very talented and played a great game two but they are known for playoff failures and I expect a strong bounce back from a gritty Blue Jackets team that swept the league-best Lightning out of the post-season last year. Coach Torts and this Jackets team know a thing or two about playoff hockey and that experience edge as well as the Muzzin factor for this one means that this is way too much underdog value to pass up on. Great situation here with the Blue Jackets also picking up a little edge with being the designated home team for this one. Keep in mind that means they can match personnel the way they want because they get the "last change edge" on line changes. 10* COLUMBUS

NHL 10* Colorado -125 - The Stars are off the type of loss that is very tough to bounce back from. Dallas just allowed a very late lead against Vegas to slip away and a 3-1 edge turned into a 5-3 defeat in an inexcusable turn of events. The Stars have had the Avs number and that showed in the regular season meetings between these teams. But Colorado is healthy and hungry and has their eye on earning the #1 seed through this round-robin event after knocking off the defending Stanley Cup Champion Blues in the opener. Colorado didn't even get much production on offense from their top guys and yet still beat St Louis and that says a lot about just how good this Avalanche team is. I look for much more from them in this game Wednesday as they are so hungry for the #1 seed and they want to prove to Dallas that they can top them in case these teams do meet up again in the post-season. I respect the Stars but the situational edges go to the Avs here and that is why this game is priced the way it is. Lay it! 10* COLORADO

Rickenbach NHL Rotation #36 Tuesday 10* Top Play Winnipeg Jets Money Line (+) vs Calgary Flames @ 6:45 ET - I successfully used the Jets in Game 2 under the theory of "wounded dog bites the hardest" and that paid off then and I feel it will again in Game 3. Yes the Jets are hurting with the injury issues for Laine and Scheifele but they are a determined bunch and using the Tkachuck / Scheifele incident as a motivating factor for the rest of this series is going to carry them. Though it took a late goal to put away the Flames in Game 2 it never should have come to that. Both the Calgary goals were a bit fluky. First off a horrific turnover where the Jets suddenly (and mistakenly) let up and you could just see it that something stupid/bad was about to happen. Then the other Flames goal went in off a redirect off a Jets players skate! As for the Jets goals the 1st and 3rd were beauties and the 2nd one was a gritty goal in front where hard work right in front of the goalie and being willing to take a shot off yourself and then score off it was key. I have really liked the way the Jets Hellebuyck has been playing and neither goal was his fault in game two. That said, the Jets are offering superb underdog value and this highly motivated bunch gets it done in game 3 as a sizable dog again. 10* WINNIPEG

No Doubt Blowout Rout - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #29 Monday 10* Top Play Dallas Stars Money Line (+) vs Vegas Golden Knights @ 6:30 ET - Who is the Golden Knights goalie here? I don't know...your guess good as mine! All kidding aside folks, though Fleury played in the exhibition game it is expected to be Lehner that gets the nod here. However, I really believe that the goalie situation in Vegas is going to end up being an issue. I have seen this before with Fleury in the post-season when he is looking over his shoulder. Vegas, after the coaching change, certainly has improved and this has been particularly true on defense. However, Dallas is certainly no slouch either when it comes to defensive-minded hockey. That being said, I love the underdog value with the under-rated Stars in this one. Keep in mind, yesterday I had the Flyers in a #4 vs #1 match-up in the round-robin in the East and Philly got a solid 4-1 upset win over the Bruins. I strongly feel that the new playoff format for this strange season really favors the lower seeds. Philly gets a chance to move all the way up to the #1 seed in a span of just 3 games and the same holds true for the Stars as well. I see them being very hungry as a result and taking step one toward that goal with a win here. I am expecting a better effort from Vegas than we saw with Boston yesterday but I also expect the unsettled goalie situation for the Golden Knights to lead to an early goal for Dallas as that is a key to their success. The Stars get that early goal and then suffocate and frustrate teams. That is their game plan here and I like them to get the job done. It is with good reason that the Golden Knights were priced as such as a short favorite here and yet they are still attracting the bets in this one and the line has moved their way. i love spots like this and feel the markets are fooled on this one. Give me the very hungry dog! 10* DALLAS

Game of the Week - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #20 Sunday 10* Top Play Colorado Avalanche Money Line (-) vs St Louis Blues @ 6:30 ET - The Blues did not look good in their 4-0 loss to the Blackhawks. Granted it was only an exhibition game but was not a good sign for a St Louis team that is certainly a very strong team (they are the defending champs after all) but that struggles against teams with good speed. That said, this is a really tough match-up for the Blues as the Avalanche are so dangerous with their top line of MacKinnon, Rantanen, and Landeskog. Colorado would have had an even better record to this point were it not for injuries but now, fully healthy, and with two very capable goalies too, the Avs are a real threat to win it all this season. They are fully focused on the top prize and know that earning a top seed for the post-season could go a long way toward securing that goal. The Avalanche are hungry and, for the Blues, lets just remind everyone how hard it is to repeat as Stanley Cup champs and to have a target on your back. Yes this is just one game as part of the round robin (the teams involved in the West are Vegas and Dallas) but this is a chance for the hungrier team to prove they are going to be a force to be reckoned with and, again, their team speed is going to be a problem for the Blues. This is the type of match-up that gives St Louis fits when they're firing on all cylinders and, of course, the Blues are not yet in that "mode" just yet after the long layoff. Speed kills. 10* COLORADO

Daytime Dominator - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #6 Saturday 10* Top Play New York Islanders Money Line (-) vs Florida Panthers @ 4 ET - Why did this line open in the pick'em range? Well the Islanders were the coldest team in the NHL prior to the unexpected shutdown of sports back in mid-March. That said, the ugly 7-game losing streak is keeping this line lower than it should be. The Islanders, as much as any team in the NHL, really benefited from the break. Now they, of course, have had plenty of time to regroup and also they are much healthier and got some key players back they otherwise would not have had. I know the games weren't the ones that count but in action leading up to this game in the short summer camp that each team was afforded, the Panthers got blasted 5-0 by Tampa Bay while the Islanders are off a tight, morale-boosting win. Sergei Bobrovsky is the Panthers goalie and is a combined 1-5 the past 2 seasons in starts against the Islanders. His first season in Florida has been rough as he has posted the highest GAA of his 10-year career. I feel strongly that the Islanders have the edge in goal in this match-up and in a 5-game series, winning game one is so critical. I don't see the Isles being denied in this one and, just like the series 4 years ago when these teams met in the post-season, the Panthers will fall short in Game One. 10* NEW YORK ISLANDERS

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #64 Wednesday 10* Top Play Edmonton Oilers Money Line (-) vs Winnipeg Jets @ 9:05 ET - The Jets have been hot on home ice but cold on enemy ice and I look for that trend to continue here. If you had just played the home team in each of Winnipeg's last 8 games you would be a perfect 8-0. I like backing Edmonton here as they should get Connor McDavid back. He missed Monday's game against Vegas with an illness. I am expecting him back tonight but, either way, I look for the Oilers to respond big off that tough OT loss Monday. Edmonton had won 8 of 12 on home ice prior to that tough loss to the Golden Knights in which they gave up the tying goal late in the 3rd period. The Oilers had won 4 of 5 prior to the loss to Vegas. Also, the Jets have had their number in recent meetings. Edmonton got a much needed win this series on the final day of February but there is still much payback to be delivered as Winnipeg has been a nemesis in recent seasons. Coming off a loss, the Oilers come in hungry and take advantage of a Jets team that has lost 4 straight road games. 10* EDMONTON

NBC Sports Network Rout - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #61 Wednesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Chicago Blackhawks vs San Jose Sharks @ 8:05 ET - The Blackhawks Corey Crawford has been playing well between the pipes but he certainly doesn't have good recent history against the Sharks. In fact, Crawford's struggles against San Jose are part of the reason 7 straight meetings between these teams have all totaled 6 or more goals. I look for Chicago to bounce back here off a shutout home loss to the Blues Sunday. That was preceded by a 2-1 shocking loss at Detroit but the Blackhawks entered that game having scored an average of 4.4 goals in 5 prior games. They'll get back on track here against a Sharks team that is off a 4-3 loss to Colorado and that has allowed 3.7 goals per game in its last 3 road games. San Jose has been scrappy and playing competitive hockey but they won't be able to slow down the Blackhawks in this one and that is why I like the over. Should be another back and forth high-scoring game between these two teams. The end result will be an 8th straight game totaling 6 or more goals between these clubs. The Sharks have scored an average of 3.2 goals per game their last 5 games. 10* OVER the total in Chicago

Earliest Cash - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #51 Tuesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Detroit Red Wings vs Carolina Hurricanes @ 7:35 ET - The Red Wings off huge upset win over Tampa Bay and scored 4 goals in regulation. On Tuesday they are expected to be facing former Detroit netminder Peter Mrazek as he returns from injury. The Hurricanes goalie is likely going to have to shake off some rust in his first start in awhile and he also has struggled on the road this season. Away from home on the season Mrazek is 5-8-2 with a 3.05 GAA. The Red Wings have been a scrappy team of late and have hung tough with teams in 4 straight games! Hanging tough again here means another high-scoring game is likely. That's because the Red Wings options in goal are Jimmy Howard (having an awful season) or Jonathan Bernier. Note that Bernier has allowed 3 or more goals in 9 of his last 11 full-game efforts. You can see why, given the goalie situation, I am expecting each team to get to 3 goals in those game and yet we're dealing with a total of only 5.5 goals on this one. The Canes are off back to back wins and starting to "feel it again" in the offensive zone. On the other end of the ice Carolina had allowed 3 or more goals in 6 straight games before coming up with back to back wins. I like the way both the Hurricanes and Red Wings are trending heading into this one and expect plenty of goals. 10* OVER the total in Detroit

NBC Sports Network Rout - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #50 Tuesday 10* Top Play Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (-) vs Boston Bruins @ 7:05 ET - The Flyers have defeated the Bruins 4 straight times. Philadelphia enters this game on a 9-game winning streak and has won 7 straight home games. The Flyers, on home ice this season, are a fantastic 25-5-4 this season. Boston has the best record in the NHL so of course Philly is available in a pick'em price range here even with consideration to their home ice dominance this season. The Flyers haven't missed a step even since James van Riemsdyk went down with injury. Also, the Bruins do have a few injury issues heading into this game. I expect Carter Hart to get the start for the Flyers here. The young phenom netminder is 20-2-2 with a 1.61 GAA on home ice this season! Tuukka Rask is expected to get the start for the Bruins here and he has been "hit or miss" in recent starts. Rask has allowed 4 or more goals in 3 of his last 5 starts. Boston has lost 3 of its past 7 games 3 of the 4 wins came by a single goal. 8 of the Flyers 9 wins during their current winning streak have come by a multiple goal margin. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Pacific Division Game of the Year - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #40 Monday 10* Top Play Edmonton Oilers Money Line (-) vs Vegas Golden Knights @ 9:05 ET - Golden Knights blew a 3-0 lead at Calgary yesterday but managed to score late for a key divisional win over the Flames. Keep in mind this was with their hot goalie Robin Lehner between the pipes. Now Vegas is at Edmonton and the choices in the goal or Lehner in a back to back or, more likely, Marc-Andre Fleury getting the start. As I have written about in recent games involving the Knights, Fleury is struggling because of the Lehner addition. It is in his head and he has allowed 4 goals in each of his past two starts and this was even with facing a limited number of shots (an average of about 20 per game). Now Fleury faces an angry Oilers team as the Golden Knights are two points ahead of them for 1st in the division, plus shut them out at Vegas late last month, and it is payback time for Edmonton on home ice here. The only very impressive start Fleury has had in his last five starts was against the Oilers. Now Edmonton, in the rematch, has the home ice edge and the situational edge. The Oilers are at home and playing just their 2nd game in 4 days while the Golden Knights are playing their 2nd game in back to back nights and are on the road again. Vegas has done well in back to backs this season but Fleury has a capable back-up now in Lehner and this is effecting his psyche. I do expect Fleury to start (and struggle again) tonight but if Lehner does go I still like this play as he allowed 4 goals the last time he faced the Oilers and back to backs are not easy (nor typical) for goalies. 10* EDMONTON

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #35 Monday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Buffalo Sabres vs Washington Capitals @ 7:05 ET - The Sabres will have Linus Ullmark back between the pipes tonight. Though that is a good thing long-term for Buffalo, don't be surprised if he has plenty of rest in his first game back. That said, facing a highly potent Capitals team is not a good match-up for him and Ullmark allowed 6 goals when he most recently faced Washington in November. The Capitals choices between the pipes are Ilya Samsonov and Braden Holtby. Note that Samsonov has a poor .866 save percentage in his last 4 starts. As for Holtby, he allowed 4 goals in his most recent start at Buffalo. Also, Holtby and the Capitals are coming off a key 5-2 win in a big divisional showdown with the Penguins on Saturday. Don't be surprised if we see a bit of a letdown in the defensive zone tonight after tremendous effort in the win at Pittsburgh. The Sabres are desperate and should score well here but the expected rust for Ullmark increases the likelihood the Capitals score plenty as well. The over is 4-0 in Washington's games this month and 6-1 their last 7 overall. The Sabres have had just 1 under in their last 4 games and their most recent home game (a push against the Pens) absolutely should have gone over the total. This one won't stall out late like that one did! 10* OVER the total in Buffalo

Money Line Insider - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #26 Sunday 10* Top Play Calgary Flames Money Line (+) vs Vegas Golden Knights @ 7:05 ET - Great spot for the Flames here. They are at home and on a 3-game winning streak and they don't play again until Thursday! Conversely, the Golden Knights are off an ugly road loss and have another road game on deck tomorrow night at Edmonton. While Calgary can lay it all on the line here knowing rest is forthcoming, Vegas has a goalie decision to make tonight. Will it be Marc-Andre Fleury or Robin Lehner. Have the Golden Knights impacted Fleury's mindset by bringing in Lehner. Note that Lehner would be making his first road start as a Knight and he has allowed 4 goals per game in his 4 road starts since the calendar hit 2020. That included allowing 4 goals here in Calgary last month. As for Fleury, he has not looked the same since Vegas acquired Lehner. The Golden Knights have lost 2 of 3 and scored a total of just 4 goals in those 3 games. I really like the firepower we have seen with the Flames in recent weeks as Calgary has averaged 4 goals per game the past 4 weeks! They stay hot here and win a key divisional battle. 10* CALGARY

Situational Slaughter - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #23 Sunday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Detroit Red Wings vs Tampa Bay Lightning @ 5:05 ET - I understand the line move here. The total went from a 6 to a 5.5 and it is likely that Jonathan Bernier will get the start in goal for Detroit. The Red Wings netminder has indeed being playing well. However, the way I see this game playing out is that Tampa Bay comes out a little flat after their huge win at Boston yesterday. That was a very important game for the Lightning and also was an extremely physical penalty-filled contest. Tampa is not going to be on top of its game in its defensive zone in this game as a result. They used up a lot of mental and physical energy in hanging on for the win against the Bruins yesterday. Also, the Bolts used their #1 netminder Andrei Vasilevskiy yesterday. That is why I would not be surprised to see the Red Wings have some scoring success on home ice in this one. Detroit has been playing better of late and is playing with more effort and energy and winning more puck battles. So look for the Red Wings to pot a few goals here and take advantage of the situation. However, at the end of the day, the Lightning are just so much better in terms of the talent level of their top lines and they're going to eventually respond and put a ton of pressure on Bernier and the Red Wings. That is why I am expecting this game to see a lot more scoring than you would normally expect in this match-up. Look for a 5-3 type game here when all is said and done. 10* OVER the total in Detroit

Total Smash - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #11 Saturday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Florida Panthers vs Montreal Canadiens @ 7:05 ET - With the Panthers off a 2-1 overtime loss to the Bruins and the Canadiens off a 4-0 shutout loss at Tampa Bay, I look for a rebound here and plenty of goals from each team. Yes, Chris Driedger is back in goal for Florida but he is still a bit unproven at this young stage in his career. This will be just his 10th NHL start and, prior to the solid effort against Boston, he had allowed 4 goals in each of his two preceding starts. Montreal has allowed an average of 3.4 goals per game in its last 5 games and will struggle with the potent Panthers attack. The Habs had scored an average of 3.3 goals per game in their 8 games preceding the shutout loss to the Lightning. Both these clubs very capable of a strong bounce back in the offensive zone in this one and I am not as sold on the goaltending situation here as the markets are (total dropped from a 6.5 to a 6 in overnight trading). 10* OVER the total in Florida

Atlantic Div Game of the Year - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #9 Saturday 10* Top Play Tampa Bay Lightning Money Line (+) @ Boston Bruins @ 7:05 ET - The Lightning are one of the best teams in the league and, after hitting a recent rough patch (which followed a torrid winning streak) they are rounding back into form even without Steven Stamkos. That said, this is a rare (and fantastic) opportunity to back them as an underdog! Because this game is at Boston (#1 record in the NHL) we're able to get the Bolts at a dog price. The Lightning are playing with revenge after losing to the Bruins at home on Tuesday in a tight 2-1 loss. Prior to that defeat, Tampa Bay had won 4 straight meetings and remember they also knocked the Bruins out of the playoffs two years ago by winning 4 straight games after dropping the season opener. The point is that the Bolts have had Boston's number but now are off a rare loss in this series. That said, remember who was the #1 regular season team by a landslide last season? Yes, it was Tampa. Now Boston has that honor with about month of regular season hockey to go. Look for the Lightning to come out playing like a team that wants to show who is still the league's best team. They are gearing up for a much better post-season performance in this post-season and the Bolts will play with a tremendous amount of effort and energy in this game. The Bruins were fortunate to beat the Panthers Thursday and Boston's two recent losses came by a combined score of 14 to 5. One of those ugly losses was on home ice too and this is great spot for Lightning to hand them another one. 10* TAMPA BAY

Game of the Week - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #70 Friday 10* Top Play Winnipeg Jets Money Line (+) vs Vegas Golden Knights @ 8:05 ET - Marc-Andre Fleury was having a great season for the Golden Knights and had been on a strong run and the Vegas management had to go and screw it all up. At least that is my opinion with the Knights acquisition of Robin Lehner. We've seen this story before with Fleury in Pittsburgh. He did great there until they brought in a quality back and then it as if he cracked under the pressure. So now, instead of a back-up like Malcolm Subban behind him, Fleury has Lehner in the rear-view mirror. Lehner already off back to back great starts with Vegas. As for Fleury he is off an ugly effort against the division rival Kings that saw him allow 4 goals on just 17 shots! Now Fleury and the Golden Knights have to go on the road and face a hungry Jets team that has a high-quality netminder in Connor Hellebuyck between the pipes. Winnipeg is battling for their playoff lives and to get them as a home dog in a spot like this is truly a high value spot. The Jets have held the upper hand in recent meetings with Vegas and I fully expect that to continue here. The last two times Fleury was in the net against them, they won those games by a combined score of 10 to 4. Look for more dominance here as the situation is deal for a home rout. 10* WINNIPEG

Rickenbach NHL Rotation #55 Thursday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Ottawa Senators vs New York Islanders @ 7:35 ET - Marcus Hogberg has been better in goal of late in comparison with Craig Anderson. However, Hogberg has been dealing with a family matter and the Senators even recently called up goalie Filip Gustavsson from the minors. No matter how you look at it, Ottawa's goalie situation is tenuous right now and the fired up Islanders will take advantage. However, the issue for New York is they can't stop anyone! The Isles have allowed 15 goals in their last 4 games as they are suddenly struggling with some goaltending issues of their own. The Islanders offensive production should come back to life against the lowly Senators but I do look for Ottawa to pot a few goals as well and that is why I am grabbing the over in this match-up. The Sens have allowed 3.64 goals per game their last 14 games. The Senators have scored 3.2 goals per game their last 5 games. Neither of those stats includes OT or SO goals of course. That said, the Sens have been scrappy of late on home ice and we'll get their fair share here but look for the desperate Islanders to answer them goal for goal. The Isles still trying to secure a playoff spot and this game will feature plenty of scoring given all of the above. 10* OVER the total in Ottawa

Rickenbach NHL Rotation #48 Thursday 10* Top Play Florida Panthers Money Line (+) vs Boston Bruins @ 7:05 ET - Great home dog value here. The Bruins are off a huge win over rival Tampa Bay Tuesday. The Lightning have been a thorn in the side of Boston for a long time and, after that hard-fought 2-1 win and now playing on the road yet again, the Bruins fall flat here. Another divisional foe, Florida, has been lying in wait and goalie Chris Driedger is expected back for this one. Driedger has been great and the Panthers have revenge here after losing at home to the Bruins in their most recent meeting. That was preceded by Florida winning 6 of the last 9 meetings and I like this home underdog situation for the hungry Panthers. They enter this game off a home shutout versus Calgary Sunday. In other words, Florida has a rest edge and a motivational edge and a situational edge in comparison with Bruins here. Upset alert with the Panthers! 10* FLORIDA

Total of the Week - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #39 Wednesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in Calgary Flames vs Columbus Blue Jackets @ 8:35 ET - The Blue Jackets will build off their 5-3 win versus Vancouver Sunday as they rallied from a 3-1 deficit late in the 3rd period and scored 4 unanswered goals. That gives Columbus some momentum heading into this game but they still have a tough goaltending situation. Joonas Korpisalo is back but is still showing signs of rust from the time away when he was injured. Also, Elvis Merzlikins is now out with an injury and this is a Jackets team that has allowed 3.7 goals per game in regulation time of their last 10 games. Columbus allowed 3 goals in ALL TEN of those games. The total on this game is only a 5.5 and I feel we have great value with the over in this one. Calgary shutout the Blue Jackets at Columbus earlier this season so payback is on order here. The two meetings last season between these teams saw the clubs combine to average 10.5 goals per game! The Flames enter this game off a rare shutout as they won 3-0 at Florida Sunday. Prior to that low-scoring win, Calgary had allowed 3.7 goals per game in their 7 most recent games. While Columbus got back on track and will have extra confidence in the offensive zone in this one as a result, look for the home team to do plenty of damage in the offensive zone too! The Flames have scored an average of 4.3 goals per game their last 12 games! 10* OVER the total in Calgary

NBC Sports Network Rout - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #37 Wednesday 10* Top Play Philadelphia Flyers Money Line (+) @ Washington Capitals @ 7:05 ET - The Capitals have revenge from an ugly home loss the last time they faced the Flyers. However, one has to be careful just blindly playing revenge situations. Take a closer look at this game and realize that Philadelphia is on fire right now and has a chance to further close the gap on Washington for the top spot in the division by coming up with a win here. If the Flyers get a regulation win in this match-up they will be just a single point out of first place in the Metropolitan! The Capitals are off a road win at Minnesota but that was preceded by a 10-game stretch that saw Washington lose 7 games! As for the Flyers, they enter this game on a 6-game winning streak and have just 5 losses in their last 20 games! Great value with the solid road dog price and I'll back the team that has been the much better team of late as the Flyers continue to play with a ton of confidence. 10* PHILADELPHIA

Non-Conference Game of the Year - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #18 Tuesday 10* Top Play New York Rangers Money Line (+) vs St Louis Blues @ 7:05 ET - Perfect set-up here. The Rangers had been surging but then ran into a red hot Flyers team and lost both games in a home and home set to wrap up last week. New York played better than the final score would indicate in Sunday's home loss to Philadelphia. Also, the Rangers will have Alexanadar Georgiev between the pipes for this one. He struggled against the Flyers Friday but had been red hot prior to that. Look for Georgiev to get right back on track and the Rangers are catching the Blues at the perfect time for a home dog upset. St Louis is off a key divisional win over Dallas on Saturday which saw the Blues win 4-3 in the shootout. The Rangers have revenge her as they lost at St Louis 5-2 in January. The Rangers had swept the Blues last season and won those games by a combined score of 6-3. Look for the home team to get payback here at an underdog price as St Louis is over-valued now because of their recent winning streak. The Blues had been ice cold prior to this 7-game run. The Rangers had won 9 of 10 prior the back to back losses to a red-hot Philly team. The value is clearly with the home dog here in a big way. 10* NEW YORK RANGERS

Contrarian Crusher - Rickenbach NHL Rotation #21 Tuesday 10* Top Play OVER the total in New York Islanders vs Montreal Canadiens @ 7:05 ET - The under is attracting some attention here but in typical contrarian fashion I am on the over. The Islanders are though of as an "under" team but take a closer look at what they've done on home ice and you'll see why I like the over so much in this spot especially as we get value with the over 5.5 and not even having to lay any juice! The Isles are off a 4-0 home loss but that came against a tough Bruins team that was angry. Note that prior to that defeat, the Islanders had scored an average of 4.1 goals per game over their 10 prior home games! You can see that the Isles generally score well at home. The issue for New York of late has been between the pipes. The Islanders have started giving up more goals in recent games and now they face a Canadiens team that has been scoring quite well. That is why 6 of Montreal's last 7 games have totaled 7 or more goals. In 5 of those 7 games BOTH the Habs and their opponent EACH scored 3 goals. You can see why I am liking the over in this match-up as the Isles bounce back at home off a rare home ice shutout but will also struggle to stop the Canadiens here. 10* OVER the total in New York Islanders