What a night of hockey with a line brawl and a thrilling game that went to extra periods, and there are some more exciting matchups tonight in the latest NHL games in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Before we dive in on tonight’s games and predictions let’s highlight last night’s scores.
Pittsburgh Penguins 4 – New York Rangers 3
Washington Capitals 4 – Florida Panthers 2
Colorado Avalanche 7 – Nashville Predators 2
Calgary Flames 1 – Dallas Stars 0
I was 3/4 on the predictions on the night, bringing my overall record to 4/8.
Tonight we have the same schedule as Monday and I am excited to kick things off with the predictions and thoughts on each game.
Boston Bruins at Carolina Hurricanes – 7 PM ET
Carolina leads the series 1-0
Carolina dominated the Bruins in game one and that could be a similar result tonight. Boston didn’t get enough offense to keep up with the Hurricanes with Taylor Hall scoring the lone Bruins goal in game one. Carolina had an electric crowd and in order for Boston to win this series, they need to pull off a win in Carolina at some point.
My Prediction: Carolina wins game two.
Tampa Bay Lightning at Toronto Maple Leafs – 7:30 PM ET
Toronto leads the series 1-0
The Lightning did not play their best game in game one, and the score showed it. With both these teams at their best, I think it is a toss-up of who wins and I wouldn’t be surprised to see Tampa pull away with the win tonight.
My Prediction: Tampa Bay wins game two.
St. Louis Blues at Minnesota Wild – 9:30 PM ET
St. Louis leads the series 1-0
The Blues and Wild game was not close in game one. One would expect Minnesota is going to be involved in this game one way or another. If the Blues score the first goal the Wild might get physical to try and get their way back into this series. Going down 2-0 would basically be an end to the Wild’s playoff hopes, so hopefully, they can pull out a win.
My Prediction: Minnesota wins game two.
Los Angeles Kings at Edmonton Oilers – 10 PM ET
Los Angeles leads the series 1-0
This game is going to be exciting. The Oilers were shocked giving up a late goal to the Kings that ultimately cost them the game, and I think they will come out to this game hungry for a win. I wouldn’t be surprised to see McDavid and Draisaitl on the score sheet early.
My Prediction: Edmonton wins game two.
The initial nerves of the playoffs are over. Teams should be settled in at this point ready to do the task at hand which is to win four games to get to the next round. First impressions are over, but as the defending champions know it takes more than one game to win a series. Tonight’s games definitely will be fun to watch.