NHL Playoffs - Game 3
BOSTON -½ +131 over Tampa Bay

BEST LINES:  Pinnacle -½ +131 BET365 -½ +130 SportsInteraction -½ +130 5DIMES -½ +130

Game 3 - posted at 3:15 PM EST.

7:05 PM EST. Regulation only. Inconsistent officiating was the big story coming out of Game 2 with NBC Sports analyst Jeremy Roenick calling the effort from referees Eric Furlatt and Kelly Sutherland “unacceptable”. JR highlighted a phantom slashing call on Torey Krug that resulted in a power play marker for the Lightning and a no call on Anton Stralman after he took out Brad Marchand on a breakaway as the glaring errors from the evening. Although it was 1-1 after one, the Bruins were never really able to recover from those early major momentum changes in favor of the Bolts. The Bruins finished right behind the Bolts in the Atlantic Division with the title not being decided until the last day of the season, yet Boston is being disrespected in their own barn. Like the Jets last night, the B's are a much cheaper price at the TD Garden than Tampa was at Amalie Arena and that is not right. The Bruins won both home games against the Bolts and the B's had a better home record than Tampa Bay. During the regular season, the Bruins were just outside the top 10 in faceoff percentage while Tampa was  27th. Through two games the B's trail 59-50 in that category, but a correction is coming as this series shifts to a more favorable location. Boston was able to score in bunches against the Maple Leafs in Round 1 tallying 22 markers in four home games and now the B’s return to the scene of the crime. Boston is clearly the best team left in the East but they are not priced as such and we therefore must try to take advantage.

The media has been selling the Bolts as the beasts in the East all season long, but that useless chatter just influences a market that values results over anything else. In Game 2, one of the color analysts praised the play of defenseman Ryan McDonagh and how he has taken the pressure off of Victor Hedman to be Tampa's top shutdown defender. How has Hedman responded? With two assists and a +1 rating through seven playoff games. Hedman has been invisible and if he's not expected to defend a top line or score what good he is? Oh, by the way, McDonagh is a -2 through two games in this series, which again goes to show that you cannot be influenced by what you hear on these broadcasts. The Bolts got nearly every bounce in Game 2 and still needed an empty-netter late just to seal the deal. With the market conditioned to believe that Tampa is the better team here, it is going to look appealing to take back a price with them tonight, but do not be fooled. The Bruins are the better team everywhere on the ice, especially on defense.

Please note: We have leans posted daily on Twitter and you can follow us there for leans, possible late plays or any other info we might have to pass along. 

Open an account today at Pinnacle Sports and take advantage of their -104 style pricing on sides and totals, which is 60% better than other sportsbooks.



Our Pick

BOSTON -½ +131 (Risking 2 units - To Win: 2.62)

Follow us on Twitter or Facebook and receive instant notification when all picks have been posted.

Chicago +167 over Ottawa