Friday night offers another rematch from last year’s Stanley Cup Eastern Conference Finals as the Florida Panthers take to PNC Arena for a 7pm ET NHL showdown against the Carolina Hurricanes.
The Panthers and Canes clash for the third time this season with their last meeting on December 23 seeing Florida rally for an incredible 5-2 comeback win after scoring five unanswered goals in the third period.
The Panthers are in dire need of points to begin the climb back into the top three in the Atlantic Division, and have gone 3-3 since the start of January to reach 51 points on the season.
The Stanley Cup champions have gone back-to-back with wins over the Senators and Sabres to get themselves going but Friday’s game against Carolina will be a harsh test of grit and consistency.
Despite the Canes slipping in OT to the Red Wings last Monday and then being shut out against the Blues on Tuesday, they still maintain first place in the Metropolitan Division, five points ahead of the Islanders.
Carolina has yet to get revenge for their Conference Finals defeat last season, having lost both regular season games as well as two in preseason, which can only add to their motivation
Florida Panthers look great value on the money line at +140 given the respective form of the two teams and the fact they have had the better of Carolina for some time.
The Panthers have won home and away against the Hurricanes already this season, only just before Christmas, and while little can perhaps be read into their two preseason victories, Florida were 4-1 winners in the Eastern Conference finals.
Paul Maurice’s men have won their last two games to find confidence at just the right time, while the Canes have been beaten in their last two and even on home ice, they may just find the Panthers too tough a nut to crack once again.
Taking Florda with a 1.5 goal start at -185 is also potentially worth considering, given their inconsistent season so far, but +140 on the Money Line looks too big to ignore.
The Panthers have racked up 12 goals in their last five games, with their last two meetings against the Hurricanes and both preseason matchups concluding with six or more goals.
Despite the Hurricanes getting shut out in their last game, goals have not really been a problem for them as they had tallied 28 goals in their previous seven games, five of which had seen totals of seven or more.
Considering how this matchup has been delivering goals, and with the Canes’ high goal tally of 158 goals this season, more than six goals looks likely.
Brad Marchand and Sam Reinhart may lead Florida with the most goals this season, but Sam Bennett has been pivotal in the Panthers recent success.
He bagged both his 15th and 16th goals of the season against Montreal last Friday, and has scored three goals and provided two assists in his last five games.
While his recent point-scoring has come more consistently in the assist category, he scored in both previous games against Carolina and looks big enough at +180 odds to complete the hattrick.
Read more betting picks and predictions for the NHL on site.
Florida Panthers
+140
Carolina Hurricanes
-165
Puck Line
CAR Hurricanes -1.5
Total
O/U 6.0
Sam Reinhart (FLA Panthers)
+140
Sebastian Aho (CAR Hurricanes)
+155
Sam Bennett (FLA Panthers)
+180
Seth Jarvis (CAR Hurricanes)
+190
Nikolaj Ehlers (CAR Hurricanes)
+210
Carter Verhaeghe (FLA Panthers)
+225
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
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