The Vegas Golden Knights lead 1-0 in the Stanley Cup Final, but if there’s one lesson we’ve learned from these NHL Playoffs it’s not to write off the Florida Panthers too quickly. They have beaten the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes, so falling 1-0 down to the Golden Knights after a Game 1 that was in the balance until late in the 3rd period is not the first hardship they have faced this season.
Western Conference champions the Golden Knights got off to a perfect start, however, and will want to give their fans another win on Monday before the teams head to Florida. The action continues in Las Vegas tonight at 8:00 pm ET on TNT, so let’s take a look at the odds, betting lines and our expert’s best bets for Panthers vs Golden Knights Game 2.
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Florida Panthers vs Vegas Golden Knights odds & betting lines
Money line odds: Panthers +120, Golden Knights -135
Total goals over/under: 5.5-6 goals
Puck line odds: Panthers +1.5 (-210), Golden Knights -1.5 (+185)
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Florida Panthers vs Vegas Golden Knights expert picks
Panthers vs Golden Knights money line pick: Panthers ML (+120, BetMGM)
The Golden Knights had a dominant third period on Saturday night, producing 3 goals to win 5-2 and take a 1-0 series lead in the Stanley Cup Final. The Golden Knights were able to take advantage of the power play, producing 2 goals. It was a great sign for the Golden Knights to get their power play rolling early as well as getting their star players involved. Jack Eichel had 2 assists while Mark Stone and Reilly Smith each produced a goal, but the Golden Knights must be prepared for a huge push from the Panthers tonight.
The Panthers were a period away from taking a 1-0 lead and claiming home-ice advantage, so they should feel comfortable even though the game ended in defeat because of how they were able to keep up with the pace of the Golden Knights. Matthew Tkachuk made sure the Panthers weren’t going away unnoticed, causing havoc near the end of the game. The Panthers will need their star players such as Tkachuk, Aleksandar Barkov and Carter Verhaeghe to get on the scoresheet tonight to have a chance and their money line has value as they look to even up the series in Vegas.
Panthers vs Golden Knights over/under total goals pick: Under 6.0 (-120, BetMGM)
We saw a total of 69 shots in Game 1, which is a decent amount for a Stanley Cup Final game, but I expect a lower number of shots and scoring chances in Game 2 tonight as the teams make defensive adjustments.
Both goaltenders played fairly well in Game 1 as Golden Knights goalie Adin Hill stopped 33 of 35 shots for a .943 save percentage and the Panthers’ Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 29 of 33 shots for a .879 save percentage. I can see Bobrovsky having a huge bounce-back game tonight in Vegas and that can help this game to go under.
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