Blue Jackets vs. Bruins Game 2 Prediction: NHL Playoffs Betting Odds
In sports, there’s the whole “rust vs. rest” argument in a playoff series. That is, do the benefits of betting a series over with very early and being well-rested outweigh the potential rust factor if a team is out of game action for several days? There has been no definitive answer, but the Columbus Blue Jackets shockingly swept the record-setting Tampa Bay Lightning in the series round.
Blue Jackets vs. Bruins Stanley Cup Playoffs Betting Analysis
That series ended way back on April 16. Columbus didn’t score fewer than three goals in any game. On Thursday in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinal, the Jackets were 3-2 overtime losers at a Boston Bruins team that just played an emotional Game 7 48 hours prior against the Toronto Maple Leafs. What may have certainly helped Boston was that Leafs game didn’t go down to the wire and drain the players more physically and emotionally. The Bruins took a 2-0 lead in the first period and would never trail.
On the updated odds to win the Eastern Conference at Sports Interaction, Boston is the +125 favourite with Columbus at +500.
Columbus Blue Jackets
Columbus, playing in the conference semifinals for the first time in franchise history, had plenty of chances to win. The Jackets were down 1-0 entering the third period but took a 2-1 lead on goals from Brandon Dubinsky (first of playoffs) at 7:39 and then from Pierre-Luc Dubois (second) just 13 seconds later.
Alas, Sergei Bobrovsky, so amazing in the first round, couldn’t hold it. The 13-second span of goals scored was a playoff franchise record. However, Columbus had just 22 shots and allowed a short-handed goal. The total has gone under in 13 of the Jackets’ past 16 road games.
Boston Bruins
You’re welcome! We projected a 3-2 final score in Game 1. Teams that take a 1-0 lead in a best-of-seven series win it nearly 69 percent of the time and are 5-3 in these playoffs. Noel Acciari gave Boston a 1-0 lead at 10:34 of the first period on a short-handed goal – the 11th short-handed goal (through Thursday) of these playoffs overall, already four more than last year’s postseason.
However, the clear No. 1 star was Charlie Coyle, who is from the Boston area. He tied it 2-2 at 15:25 of the third and won it at 5:15 of overtime, his fourth and fifth goals of these playoffs. Coyle became only the second player in franchise history to score a tying goal in the final five minutes and the overtime winner in a playoff game. Tuukka Rask stopped 20 shots to become the 12th all-time goaltender of an Original Six franchise with 40 playoff wins.
The only negative from Game 1 was an injury suffered by David Krejci. He’s listed as day-to-day.
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