The Stanley Cup Final is finally here! The Tampa Bay Lighting head to the Pepsi Center in Denver to take on the Colorado Avalanche. Puck drop for game one is set for 8PM EST with the game on ESPN. The Avalanche open as -160 favorites while the Lighting are +140 underdogs. Fun fact, this is the first ever Stanley Cup where neither team’s name ends in an s.
RECENT TRENDS:
Colorado is back in the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2001 when they defeated the Devils 4-3. As for their last series, they dispatched the Oilers 4-0 with Cale Makar notching nine points (two goals, seven assists) throughout the series. He leads the team with 22 points. In net, Pavel Francouz has stepped up in place of the injured Darcy Keumper, going 6-0 so far. In both their 1996 and 2001 cup runs, Colorado also knocked out the defending champion en route to the cup with victories over the Red Wings in ‘96 and Devils in ‘01.
Tampa Bay is looking for their third straight Stanley Cup and fourth overall in franchise history. In their last series, the Lightning zapped the Rangers in six games due in large part to the man in net Andrei Vasilevskiy only allowing five goals during games three through six. The Lighting won four straight after going down 2-0 in the series. On offense, the veteran stalwart Steven Stamkos led the Lighting last series with four goals over the six games.
BETTING ANGLES:
Colorado has only lost twice at home this postseason, so taking the Avalanche moneyline (-160) can be looked at as a safe pick. Even taking the Avalanche to win in 60 minutes (Regular Time Line +104) also can be taken. The Lightning have not gone to overtime in game one of a series during this year's playoffs while it has only happened once for the Avalanche.
Itching to take a goalscorer, Cale Makar of the Avalanche is your man. Take him as an anytime goalscorer at +245. Another angle to take with Makar is to have two or more points during the game which is set at +220. Makar likes to dish the puck for an assist to increase his point totals making either a safe pick.
RECENT INJURIES:
Neither team has new injuries to report.
WHY THE LIGHTING CAN WIN:
On the road again for game one, the Lightning will look to avoid a similar performance than their 6-2 game one loss against the Rangers. For the Bolts, it comes down to Andrei Vasilevskiy in net. In games three through six, he shut down the Rangers offense and out performed Igor Shesterkin as well. The scoring will find ways for the Lighting, but without Vasilevskiy, they cannot go far. If he can put up another superstar performance, the Bolts can steal game one.
WHY THE AVALANCHE CAN WIN:
It’s been over 20 years since Stanley Cup hockey has come to the mile-high city, but the Av’s are ready for game one. While there are still some question marks around the net, their offense, led by Cale Makar, Nathan MacKinnon and Nazem Kadri has out scored and played offenses like the Oilers and Blues. The Avalanche offense can outshoot the Lighting and if they shock Vasilevskiy early like the Rangers did, Colorado can cruise to a 1-0 series lead.
BEST OVERALL BET: Cale Makar Two or more Points +220
