This article is part of our NHL Picks series.
All four of the road underdogs won their respective Game 1s in this slate on Tuesday. They'll all be looking to extend their series leads while the home teams are hoping to avoid surrendering their home-ice advantage. It's gearing up to be a heck of a hockey night, folks, so here are your best NHL bets for tonight!
Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook. Check out DraftKings this NHL postseason using the DraftKings promo code to receive $150 in bonus bets.
Stanley Cup Playoff Picks Tonight
Rangers vs Devils
The Rangers basically steamrolled the Devils in Game 1, on and off the ice. The game on the ice was never really a contest after the Rags jumped out to a 2-goal lead in the first 10 minutes of action. As the camera panned around the rink, the blue-clad Rangers fans looked like they were the majority in the building too so this isn't your traditional "home-ice advantage" for the Devils anyhow. The value of playoff experience was on full display on Tuesday as the fledgling Devils looked like the clearly lesser foe. From Jack Hughes all the way down the bench, the Devils were shook. Can they light a fire tonight, or will it be more of the same? The bookmakers seem to think so listing New Jersey as the favorite, but I'm liking these "underdog" Rangers on the "road."
Rangers ML +115
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Lightning vs Maple Leafs
You can analyze some games to death and sometimes it will all be null and void, and that's exactly what happened in Toronto for Game 1 of this series. The Bolts walked away with a 7-3 win, scored in the game's first 2 minutes, and held multi-goal margins for all but 2ish minutes in the 2nd period. It wasn't all victorious for Tampa though, as defensemen Victor Hedman and Erik Cernak both left the game with injuries. Toronto's Michael Bunting was also handed a 3-game suspension for his hit that knocked Tampa forward Mikey Eyssimont out of the contest too. Cernak won't play tonight, and even though Hedman hasn't been ruled out, injuries to both of those guys leave a huge hole on the Lightning blue line. Not having Bunting in the lineup will be a loss for the Leafs, no doubt, but I think Game 1 was a major wake-up call and the home team finally makes its authentic playoff debut tonight to send the series tied back to Tampa.
Maple Leafs ML -170
Jets vs Golden Knights
It'd be a stretch to say the Jets "stole" Game 1 from the Golden Knights on Tuesday after they walked away with a 5-1 victory. They outshot VGK 31-17. Jack Eichel was minus-3 in his postseason debut. Jets forward Morgan Barron got cut above the eye with a skate, needed 75 stitches, and STILL PLAYED THE REST OF THE GAME. A total victory for the visiting club. Can they run it back again tonight? The way Connor Hellebuyck's playing, I think anything can happen. But Vegas bench boss Bruce Cassidy has been around the block a time or two, and so have many of the leaders in his dressing room. I'd expect a big push from the Knights tonight. But I also have a feeling about these Jets.
Jets ML +140
Kraken vs Avalanche
Wowzers. The Kraken dominated the Avalanche in Game 1. That's a real thing that actually happened in this plane of existence. Sure, Nathan MacKinnon was buzzing and fell victim to some stingy posts. But he wasn't even the best player on the ice on Tuesday as the Kraken defense smothered him basically anywhere he went. Yanni Gourde might've been the standout star on either side, and Philipp Grubauer seemed determined to remind his former squad that it was a bad idea to ship him off a few seasons ago. Can they repeat the same performance in Game 2? I'm not betting on it. They've been in Denver for a few days now, I feel like the altitude's going to get to them.
Avalanche PL +120
