Penguins vs. Rangers Stanley Cup Playoffs Game 2 Odds, Preview and Free Pick (Archive)
The Penguins drew blood early in the series as they beat the Rangers 4-3 in the 3rd overtime. We predicted the Penguins to win in overtime on Twitter, so let’s hope we can get another good read on tonight’s NHL action between the Penguins and Rangers.
Pittsburgh Penguins vs. New York Rangers
Thursday, May 05, 2022 – 07:00 PM EDT at Madison Square Garden
Penguins vs. Rangers: Game 1 Recap
The first game of the series was always going to be tight and feisty, and it proved to be, as the game went to a 3rd overtime until the Penguins finally struck home the winner. During the regular season, the Rangers beat the Penguins 11-4 across all the games and they do have a much better goaltender in the crease.
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Igor Shesterkin saved 79 shots in game 1, breaking a 59-year-old franchise record for most saves in a playoff game. He only allowed 2.07 goals per game in the regular season, the best in the NHL. He also boasts the best save percentage at .935. If the Rangers are going to win game two, they will need to look to Shesterkin again.
Penguins' Starting Goaltender: Louis Domingue
The Penguins had to bring in their 3rd string goaltender Louis Domingue into Game 1 and he produced the goods in 16 minutes as he helped his team win the game. Domingue is set to be the starter tonight for the Penguins and he has only started 4 NHL games across the previous three seasons and has only racked up 35 playoff minutes in his career.
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It’s going to be a completely different scenario tonight and the Rangers will have a lot more time to figure him out, they are probably already watching tape. The Penguins have a number of key injured players and some questionable. We feel the Penguins are a little disrespected tonight being priced up at +135 but at the same time, it must be said that they would most likely be in around +115 if they weren’t starting Domingue.
NHL Team Trends
*Trends should never be your main source of information when it comes to making your sports betting picks, they are merely guidelines and mostly irrelevant information but nonetheless can be interesting to read.
Pittsburgh Penguins Trends
- Pittsburgh is 4-1 in their last 5 games against an opponent in the Eastern Conference.
- Pittsburgh is 2-5 in their last 7 games on the road.
- The total has gone over in 5 of Pittsburgh's last 6 games against an opponent in the Metropolitan Division.
New York Rangers Trends
- The total has gone over in 4 of the NY Rangers' last 6 games.
- NY Rangers are 1-4 in their last 5 games.
- The total has gone over in 4 of the NY Rangers' last 5 games when playing at home against Pittsburgh.
What Are the Betting Odds and Current Lines?
Moneyline: The Penguins are being disrespected again by the best sportsbooks and are priced as high as +135. The moneyline on the home side is coming in at -160.
Total: Tonight’s total line has been set at 5.5 with the Over being chalked up at -125 whilst the Under is +110.
Puck Line: You will have to lay -205 to take the Penguins on the +1.5 line but they are a nice +330 to cover the -1.5 spread. The Rangers are +150 to win by two or more.
NHL Betting Predictions
Although we don’t often factor in goaltenders a whole lot when making our betting plays, we are going to make an exception in this case. It’s essentially the best goaltender in the league vs. a team’s 3rd string. On top of this, we have the Rangers who have been +7 goals against the Penguins in the regular season.
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In Game 1, the Rangers didn’t play anywhere near their standard and ended up just about losing. We see this being a much more dominant performance on home ice from the Rangers and we are prepared to bet them on the PK line -1.5 for +150.
There’s also a possibility only one goaltender suits up tonight, things could turn bad if he had to leave the ice injured. On top of all this, we would still side with the Rangers even if the Penguins had a healthier roster and not a 3rd string goaltender.
Score Prediction: Rangers 3 - Penguins 1
NHL Pick: NY Rangers -1.5 (+150) at BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review)
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.