The Florida Panthers meet the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 1 of their Stanley Cup Final playoff series Saturday. Puck drop at T-Mobile Arena is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET (TNT). Below, we analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Panthers vs. Golden Knights odds, and make our expert NHL picks and predictions.
The Panthers walked the plank and came away victors. They entered as the 2nd Wild Card and took down the team with the best regular-season record in NHL history in the Boston Bruins in the opening round, and two more mighty opponents in the Toronto Maple Leafs (who finished the regular season with the 4th most points leaguewide) and Carolina Hurricanes (who finished the regular season with the 2nd most points leaguewide). They must face now the best in the West in order to hoist the cup.
Vegas had an easier road on paper, taking down the Winnipeg Jets, Edmonton Oilers and Dallas Stars. They won each series convincingly, though. One of these teams is walking away with their first Stanley Cup in club history.
Game 1: Best Panthers at Golden Knights prop bet picks
Jonathan Marchessault UNDER 3.5 shots on goal (-160)
Marchessault blossomed into a star in these playoffs with 9 goals and 8 assists, including a goal in 4 of his last 5 games. He did almost everything in the Dallas series. The one thing he didn’t do? Register 4 shots on goal in a game. Florida will likely make him a focal point, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he lit the lamp, but I’ll take the Under on shots on goal.
Adin Hill OVER 29.5 saves (-110)
The Panthers averaged the most shots on goal in the regular season at 36.8 per game. Throw out Game 1 against Carolina because it went to 4 overtimes, and they averaged just 22 shots per game in the final 3 games. That’s what is most impressive is how they changed up their style of play to beat their opponent.
Vegas allowed the 13th most shots per game at 30.9, and Hill averaged 30.8 saves per game against Dallas. Florida is not Dallas, and they will look to bring pressure early and often. He’ll need to be on his game to turn aside 30, but the numbers are there for a decent price.
Ivan Barbashev OVER 0.5 Points (+105)
The man endearingly known as “Barbie,” is a pending free agent in the offseason and has earned himself a nice payday with his clutch performance in these playoffs. He has 6 goals and 9 assists and has a point in 11 of 17 games. So he has a point in 65% of the games, and we can get him at plus-money? I’ll take that.
Sergei Bobrovsky OVER 29.5 saves (-105)
Bobrovsky has stopped 30 shots 9 times in his 13 starts in the playoffs. He made 29 saves in one other game. The Panthers were bottom 10 in the regular season, allowing 31.7 shots per game, and VGK was 15th averaging 31.5. Pretty solid odds here for the likelihood of a cash.
Will both teams score 2 or more goals? (including overtime and shoot-outs): YES (-160)
This series features 2 offensive-minded teams that post a lot of shots and allow some goals. Florida was 21st in the league, allowing 3.3 goals/game, and VGK was 11th at 2.7. Both have high-powered offenses. There’s a little more juice than I’d like for a Game 1, but it has cashed in 5 of 7 games in this matchup.
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