10/12

Montreal vs Toronto:

This is a matchup that needs to be approached with caution. As good as Toronto is as a team, they struggle within the division against Ottawa and Montreal. This year is no different being the first game of the season and both teams are weak in net with Matt Murray starting against Jake Allen. Knowing what to expect from Matt Murray will be tough off the bat. Murray is a Cup winning goalie for Pitt who has significantly fallen off over the years. John Tavares wasn’t expected to be ready for the season opener but should be in tonight. I already personally have the Leaf’s team total at 2.5 in my parlay from last night but I do not see any lines or plays tonight worth making on the Leaf’s. The ML in a parlay would be the play I would make if I was going to play it but I do not feel it’s a play that needs to be made on their opening night, especially on the road. This is me playing it safe as opposed to thinking they necessarily lose so if you personally want to make the play you can. If they lose you may hear me say I told you so. 

Prediction:

Final score 4-3 range with either team winning

Chicago vs. Colorado:

You need to know that losing Keumper, Andre Burakovsky, and Nazem Kadri will matter for them. These losses may not matter for them tonight from a win perspective, but it will long term. Alexandar Georgiev is now the Avalanche starting goaltender and that will be a problem for them in my opinion. With Georgiev in net Chicago should be able to put up their two to three goals tonight making the over in this game a very likable play. Petr Mrazek starts in net for Chicago making the Colorado side even more favorable. I will not be touching this game on a side as their team total at 4.5 is way too high for me to make a play on and a -420 ML is not worth the parlay boost by adding them. I don’t trust this goaltending matchup to be willing to take Colorado on the puck line at -1.5 so I will be making a play on the over at 6 and parlaying the alt over at 5.5 with the 5.5 total in Carolina for +142 which I think has tremendous value. This would be the one game I wouldn’t mind laddering getting 7 at +175 and 7.5 at +230.

Prediction:

Final Score 5-4 range

Seattle Kraken vs. Anaheim Ducks:

I am looking very forward to watching this Seattle team this year. The write up on Seattle this year is a must read and why I will be taking them tonight. Anaheim comes in as a slight favorite so Seattle will be the first underdog ML we take this season. I will be playing it light for a unit but will be playing their team total for more. What I need to watch in this matchup is how Phillip Grubauer plays. I am a bit surprised by the projected lines tonight with Eberle-Gourde-Tanev as the third line and Shane Wright playing on the fourth line but I’m buying into it. I believe this Kraken team is very deep and just needs the time and experience in the regular season to get it going. The Ducks are a mediocre team that will win and lose often with no real push to be a contender this year so this is a game they could win if Grubauer fails to show up. I don’t see the Ducks winning this in a low scoring game so if the Ducks can be held to three goals or less this will be Seattle’s game to win making the team total very favorable. I would lay off the game total because if Grubauer does show up the Ducks could be limited to two or less. 

Prediction:

Kraken win 4-2 / 3-1

*It is worth noting that when I give prediction scores I recommend playing three total. I start with the score I specifically think will be the final and then I play for the possibility of being off by a goal on either side. Last night for example I projected the game to be in the 3-2 final range so playing 3-1 and then 3-3 and 4-1 were my covers because I felt Tampa Bay would be limited offensively. The extra goal usually is tied to being in a spot to be protected by the empty net when leading. 4