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Edgar Chaput
Hurricanes vs. Rangers Game 5 Prediction, Stanley Cup Playoff Odds
It wasn’t easy and the game almost escaped them, but the Carolina Hurricanes finally caused turbulence for the New York Rangers. The Raleigh-based club narrowly won Game 4, 4-3 with the winning goal coming very late and after the Rangers clawed back from a 3-1 deficit.
The games have been remarkably close in this series, making for very narrow NHL Playoff odds. For the fifth bout the Rangers are priced at -105 on the moneyline and the Canes at -115.
Hurricanes vs. Rangers NHL Betting Odds
The series odds have shifted, but only slightly. The Rangers remain the favourites, not to mention they lead it 3-1 with a game at Madison Square Garden coming up.
Carolina winning the series was at +900 heading into Saturday’s action and now has risen slightly to +500. They are still a long shot to take it in seven.
That New York should claim the series in six games is +340. If the full seven contests are required to do away with the Hurricanes, that’s priced at +500, just like for their opponents.
As far as injury news goes, the Rangers may have to be without the services of Filip Chytil yet again. He had just returned from an extended absence due to an upper-body injury. The Hurricanes will continue to be without Brett Pesce and Jesper Fast.
Carolina Hurricanes
There is an old expression that says “better late than never.” It’s tempting to apply that for this series, although one wonders if the Game 4 victory over the Rangers on Saturday will prove to be “too little, too late.” Few teams have come back from a 3-0 series deficit, but it’s always worth fighting until the end.
A couple of major takeaways from Game 4. First, Carolina looked fantastic from the outset. By the time the clubs retired to their quarters for the first intermission, the Hurricanes led 3-1, deservedly so. They skated faster, forechecked better, and executed beautiful shots that fooled New York netminder Igor Shesterkin. Evgeny Kuznetsov (third) sniped a pretty shot to open the scoring, Stefan Noeson (fourth) batted home a rebound from in close, and a Sebastian Aho (third) wrister also fooled the Rangers’ keeper.
Second, when it mattered most, with their entire 2023-24 campaign hanging in the balance, the Hurricanes scored on the power play. Brady Skjei (first) blasted a one-timer with barely three minutes left in regulation and the score level at 3-3. Carolina is a horrendous 1-for-17 on the man advantage in the series, but the lone marker came at the most critical moment.
New York Rangers
Turning over to the New York Rangers, this is a situation where coaching will become even more important than usual. Peter Laviolette is one of the best in the business and his skill set at communicating to his players will be of utmost importance right now.
Why? Primarily because a lot of the same players were on the rosters that coughed up a 2-0 series advantage in the 2022 Eastern Conference Final and last year’s first-round series. Furthermore, the first three matches of this bout – all won by New York – were incredibly close. The margins between the sides have been as fine as can be given that from a macro perspective it looks like the Rangers have dominated. They haven’t.
As for the goal scorers in Game 4, Will Cuylle (first) got on the board via a breakaway, Barclay Goodrow (second) netted in the middle frame, and Alexis Lafreniere (fourth) tied the the game in the third period off a clever attempt that benefited from a fortuitous bounced off Frederik Andersen’s back.
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