New York Islanders vs. Pittsburgh Penguins Game 2 Prediction, Playoff Odds
The underdog Islanders picked up their fifth straight playoff win versus Pittsburgh with a Sunday afternoon thriller.
Islanders vs. Penguins Stanley Cup Odds
After dropping Game 1, the Penguins are still the -136 favourite on the NHL odds board. A large margin of Sports Interaction customers are taking Pittsburgh to even the series, receiving 81 percent of bets so far. The Pens have only lost back-to-back home games once in the regular season and that was way back in March.
The Islanders have now covered the spread three games in a row and five of their past eight.
After a seven-goal performance in Game 1, the total for this matchup sits at 5.5 and 75 percent of bettors are betting the over again. It is not like the Islanders to be on an over trend, but they’ve hit it in four of their past six games now. They scored four Sunday for the first time in six games, so they won’t try and outgun Pittsburgh if they don’t have to. The Penguins are 5-2 to the over in their past seven as well.
New York Islanders
GM Lou Lamoriello finally saw his big trade deadline acquisition pay off. Kyle Palmieri played his best game as an Islander since swapped for a first-rounder and a couple of prospects with the Devils. It took him only a game to match his goal totals from the reg season at two, bringing him to 10 career playoff goals.
He couldn’t have done it without help from his linemates Jean-Gabriel Pageau, who had a three-point afternoon with Oliver Wahlstrom. The trio connected for three of the four Islander goals and combined for six points.
New York threw 72 hits in Game 1, out-hitting the Pens by 25. The constant forecheck made the Penguins turn the puck over 10 times, compared to the Islanders two. Coach Barry Trotz will look for more of the same from his squad in game two and continue to wear down their opponent.
Ilya Sorokin made his NHL playoff debut in game one as Semyon Varlamov remains day-to-day with a lower-body injury. Sorokin stopped 39 of 42 shots making it a tough decision for the coaches should the veteran Varlamov return Tuesday.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Only Sidney Crosby makes tipping an NHL point shot look so easy. Crosby put the Penguins in the lead with career playoff goal number 69 early in the second on a gorgeous tip. The goal pulled him into a tie with Brett Hull for seventh in all-time playoff points.
Evgeni Malkin, second in playoff points amongst active players behind 87, missed game one with an undisclosed injury and his status remains as “out” as of now. The 34-year-old centreman missed 23 total games with injury this year but after playing in the last three regular-season games, it was a surprise when he wasn’t ready for game one.
With Malkin out, Jeff Carter has pushed up the depth chart into the second-line centre spot. He had a game to forget Sunday boasting a -2 with three giveaways and a four-minute double minor to top it all off.
Brian Dumoulin missed Monday’s practice but Coach Mike Sullivan claimed it was just “a maintenance day” for the defenceman. He took a shot in the ankle in the third but still managed 29:22 of time on ice and picked up an assist.
NYI
PIT