Best NHL Bets Today | NHL Picks, April 29

Kicking off a new week in the NHL are two series that had the availability to be wrapped up tonight, but the underdogs two games into the series were able to come back for a longer fight. The Florida Panthers and the Vegas Golden Knights may appear to still hold the series lead and the momentum, but they are in for a tough fight against the potentially rejuvenated opponents. All this sets up for a great potential bet in the game lines, over/under and more through DraftKings.

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Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Florida Panthers - Game Five

• Time: 7:00 PM E.T. - Monday

• Moneyline: Lightning (+150) | Panthers (-180)

• Puck Line: Lightning +1.5 (-166) | Panthers -1.5 (+140) 

• Total: Over 6.5 (-105) | Under 6.5 (-115)

Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.

My Pick: Florida Panthers (FLA)

One of the biggest rivalry matchups going into this postseason was the series between the Florida Panthers and the Tampa Bay Lightning. Among the most surprising units in this series is the Lightning’s defense as they have held an underrated Panthers offense from a huge performance. Tampa Bay's defense was the worst statistically ranked unit heading into the series, however, they have shown to hold up their end of efficiency in this series. The only inconsistent performance defensively was in the 5-3 game three win for the Panthers.

The series looked to be a sweep from the Panthers, but the Lightning pushed through with a dominating 6-3 win at home in game four. This was the best performance of the series for the Lightning offense, which has been underwhelming in this series, as they scored three goals in the first period.

The series now heads back to Sunrise, Florida where the Panthers have their best chance to close out round one. The Panthers have been productive on the offensive side of the ice where they have averaged 3.5 goals in the four games played.

Their biggest test will be attempting to contain the explosive Lightning offense, who believe they have found momentum in this series. It starts with the Panthers containing center Brandon Hagel, who accounted for two goals and an assist in game four, and forward Nikita Kucherov, who has six assists through four games.

With the exception of game four, the Panthers’ defense has played well against an elite unit. This the unit to trust the most and give the Panthers the win. If the Lightning push for a big win on the road then the tide shifts tremendously in the favor of Tampa Bay for the remainder of the series.

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Dallas Stars vs. Vegas Golden Knights - Game Four

• Time: 9:30 PM E.T. - Monday

• Moneyline: Stars (-118) | Golden Knights (-102)

• Puck Line: Stars -1.5 (+215) | Golden Knights +1.5 (-265) 

• Total: Over 6 (+105) | Under 6 (-125)

Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.

My Pick: Vegas Golden Knights (VGK)

The Dallas Stars came into the first-round series versus the Vegas Golden Knights as the favorites based on their higher seed and the way the Golden Knights ended the regular season. The Stars hadn’t been able to account for a win over the Golden Knights in the three regular season games played. That pattern of results continued within the first two games of the series as the Golden Knights took the first two games at Dallas.

The Golden Knights had a chance to sweep the series with games three and four being in Vegas. The Stars, however, had other plans as they stole game three this past  Saturday with a 3-2 win in overtime. The Golden Knights, who scored seven goals in the two previous games, were held to two goals. Dallas took 46 shots at the goal as Vegas star goalie Logan Thompson was overwhelmed by the lack of support from his fellow defenders.

Despite the inefficient performance from the Golden Knights’ offense and defense, it took an overtime performance for the Stars to find their first win of the series. This a matchup that doesn’t favor the Stars at all and it has shown since the Western Conference Finals last season.

The Golden Knights are the more aggressive and efficient team, despite having some lack of consistency through most of the season. Dallas, who plays smart on offense, finds itself overwhelmed and has to play aggressively to have a chance.

This series won’t be over on Monday night, but if Vegas takes game four at home, they will most certainly take game five on Wednesday when the series returns to Dallas.

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