Category: Hockey

The Carolina Hurricanes staved off elimination Monday night with their 3-0 shutout of the Florida Panthers in Sunrise. Tonight their lives are on the line again when the venue moves to Lenovo Center for game 5. Can the Canes do it again and push a game 6? I say not. The Champs had a slight letdown on Monday night, but they want to rap this thing up and will come out swinging tonight. Florida has out-muscled Carolina in this series and have outscored them 16-7 over the first 4 games. Playing on the road is not an issue for the Panthers who have won four straight in the playoffs away from Sunrise: two in Toronto, and two in Carolina.
TONIGHT’S PICK: FLORIDA PANTHERS

The Toronto Maple Leafs return home tonight to face the Ottawa Senators in game 5 of round 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Leafs lead the best of 7 series (3-1), are dangerous on their home ice, and should close out the series with the Senators tonight. Toronto is 9-0 in their last 9 home games, score more than Ottawa and give up less. Scotiabank Arena will be electric with the best fans in all of professional sports and the Leafs won’t let them down.
TONIGHT’S PICK: TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS

The Tampa Bay Lighting will host the Toronto Maple Leafs tonight and Tampa is the side to consider. The Bolts are 27-8-2 at Amalie Arena and will be extra motivated after losing their last 3 meetings to the Leafs. A win tonight will tie Tampa with Toronto for the lead in the Atlantic. The Bolts will come out swinging.
TONIGHT’S PICK: TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING

The Tampa Bay Lightning are clicking on every cylinder and will go for their fifth straight win when they face the Ottawa Senators tonight in Canada’s capital. Over their last four wins, the Bolts have outscored their opponents 23-5 and have won the last two meetings with the Sens. Tampa is hot, ride them until they are not.
TONIGHT’S PICK: TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING

When the Los Angeles Kings take the ice at Crypto Arena they are always the side to consider and that is where they will be tonight when they host the New York Rangers. The Kings own the best home record in hockey at 25-3-4 and haven’t lost at the Crypt since January 20th. The Rangers have been inconsistent to say the least. They have just 1 win in their last 4 tries and 3 over their last 10. Los Angeles won easily in their last meeting at MSG on December 14th, cruising to a 5-1 victory, and should do the same tonight.  
TONIGHT’S PICK: LOS ANGELES KINGS

The New Jersey Devils will look to get back on track when they host the injury riddled Vancouver Canucks tonight at the Rock. The 32-26-12 Canucks’ injuries just keep mounting and their playoff hopes are starting to look bleak. Vancouver has lost 2 straight and 5 of their last 8. They also have trouble finding the back of the net and that doesn’t bode well against a New Jersey team that has one of the lowest goals against average in the league. The 37-28-6 Devils have also lost their last 2 but have had the Canucks’ number, routing them back in October (6-0) in Vancouver and they are 16-2-0 in the last 18 meetings overall.  
TONIGHT’S PICK: NEW JERSEY DEVILS

As the regular season winds down, the St. Louis Blues are heating up just at the right time. The Blues have won 5 straight and are 12-2-2 over their last 16. This afternoon they will host the Nashville Predators at Enterprise Center. The Preds have nothing to play for and the Blues do. With Calgary breathing down their necks for the last wild card spot, St. Louis cannot afford to lose at home to the inferior Predators and they know it. St. Louis has won both meetings with Nashville this year. The Preds are the worst offensive team in the league, their defense is not much better, and they are a dismal 8-21-5 on the road.  
TODAY’S PICK: ST. LOUIS BLUES