NHL Odds: Blackhawks Road Underdogs for Game 1 of the Cup Final
Tuesday June 2,2015 : NHL Odds: Blackhawks Look to Set Tone in Game 1 of the Cup Final
After both the Tampa Bay Lightning and Chicago Blackhawks survived Game 7’s on the road in the conference finals, they’ll get the Stanley Cup Final started with Game 1 on Wednesday night. The Lightning are 37-13-1 in all home games and will try to get the series started on the right foot this Wednesday at 8:00 PM ET. BET NHL NOW
Although the Lightning won more home games than any other team in the regular season (32), they have not fared so well in front of the home audience in the playoffs. They are just 5-5 so far, and goaltending has been the main culprit. This postseason, the Lightning are giving up 3.30 goals per game at home (second-worst of the 16 playoff teams) compared to just 1.60 on the road (best among playoff teams). We’ll see if the Blackhawks take advantage of that trend.
Both teams are well-rested for this game and it’s worth noting that Chicago was 7-5 (-2.1 units) this season when playing with three or more days rest while the Lightning were 7-3 (+2.8 units) in that same scenario. The Lightning is the 3.5-point favourite for Game 1 as we go to press.
