Daily NHL Odds and Betting Trends – 09/17/20
by OddsShark (@OddsShark) – Sponsored Post
Here’s a look at the NHL odds and betting trends for the games on today’s schedule.
All NHL betting lines below are as listed at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Lightning vs Islanders | OddsShark Matchup Report
Opening NHL Odds: Lightning -161 Favorites
The Lightning will take their second crack at knocking out the Islanders in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final on Thursday as they look to get back to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2015. New York stayed alive on Tuesday with a 2-1 double-overtime victory in Game 5, cashing as a +135 underdog at betting sites with the total going UNDER for just the second time in the series.
The Islanders got an outstanding performance from goaltender Semyon Varlamov, who made 36 saves for his best game of the conference finals by far. Varlamov had surrendered three goals or more in five of his previous six appearances going back to the last round against the Philadelphia Flyers. Tampa Bay played well enough to win too but failed to capitalize on three power-play opportunities, which ended up being the difference. The Lightning were on a four-minute power play from the end of the third period into the start of the first OT and could not take advantage of it.
Killing that double-minor penalty caused a huge momentum swing in favor of the Islanders, who got the game-winning goal from Jordan Eberle on a nice pass from Anders Lee in the second extra session following a giveaway by Kevin Shattenkirk. Tampa Bay goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy made 22 saves in defeat, the seventh time in eight games he has allowed two goals or less. The Lightning also lost for the first time in OT this postseason after going 5-0 in their previous five.
New York has still lost 14 of 20 as an underdog but at least has some hope to force a Game 7 if Varlamov can turn in a similar effort. The Islanders are 5-3 in their last eight as underdogs in the playoffs after winning two of three. Lightning forward Brayden Point has missed both of his team’s losses in this series due to an undisclosed injury and is questionable for Thursday.
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