In Do-or-Die Game 4, Islanders to Deliver as Home Underdog

Carolina has won nine of the 11 playoff games, including five of the six road contests in the two previous postseason series. The Islanders did win two of the three matchups during the regular season. When looking at only the New York Rangers are more prohibitive favorites than the Hurricanes, whose series odds moved to -1800 after winning the first two games.

The Hurricanes are favored yet again in Game 4 as they go for the sweep. Carolina is priced at -180 to win the game outright with +150 to cover at -1½ on the puck line. The Islanders have won their last three of their last four games as the home underdog so take a look at the +160 odds to send the series back to Carolina.

When looking at the NHL futures odds, the Hurricanes are tied with the Florida Panthers at +450 in the odds of winning the Stanley Cup. The Islanders’ championship odds moved from +15000 to +50000 after the Game 4 loss.

Hurricanes vs Islanders Game Information

• Game: Hurricanes 55-23-7 (26-13-3 on the road) vs Islanders 39-30-16 (21-11-10 at home)
• Date/Time: Saturday, April 27, 2 p.m. ET
• Location: UBS Arena, New York
• Hurricanes vs IslandersLive Stream: NHL.com

Deadline Acquisitions Coming Through for Hurricanes

Carolina would have been a contender even if the Hurricanes decided not to make any moves at the trade deadline. They were pretty active with Jake Guentzel and Evgeny Kuznetsov being added to a deep group of forwards.

Guentzel is tied for second on the Hurricanes with three points in the first three games of the season. He is second among Carolina’s forwards in time on ice in this series. Kuznetsov has a goal and an assist.

Guentzel averages a point a game in the playoffs with 35 goals and 26 assists in 61 playoff games. He had 13 goals as a rookie during the 2016-17 playoffs to help the Pittsburgh Penguins win the Stanley Cup. Kuznetsov won the Stanley Cup with the Washington Capitals in 2018 and he has 69 points in 90 career playoff games.

Stars Not Shining for Islanders

It is not a good sign when not one player has a positive plus/minus rating heading into the fourth game of a series.

Islanders veterans Anders Lee, Brock Nelson, Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Casey Cizikas are all -2 in the series. Bo Horvat, acquired last season to help the Islanders take the next step, is -3.

Defenseman Noah Dobson, who had a breakthrough season with 70 points, is one of the few players not to have a negative plus/minus rating but he also has no points in the series.

With the Islanders facing elimination, there are plenty of options for players to deliver in prop bets or parlays as they look to extend the series.

A Look at the Betting Trends: Carolina Road Tough

Carolina had the second-most road wins in the Eastern Conference during the regular season while the Islanders were a much better team at home than on the road, so it will be interesting to see how this game plays out.

Here are some numbers to consider for those who bet online.

• Carolina is 52-26-7 as a favorite.
• The Islanders are 19-26-10 as the underdog.
• The Islanders have seen 21 of 42 home games land over the total.
• The Hurricanes have won 12 of their last 13 road games against the Islanders.
• The total has gone under in five of the last seven games for the Islanders.
• Four of the last six times that the Islanders have been the underdog, the game went over the total.

Hurricanes vs Islanders Injury Update

Carolina head coach Rod Brind’Amour announced that defenseman Brett Pesce and forward Jesper Fast will miss the rest of the playoffs.

In a bit of a surprising turn, when discussing the injuries to Jesper Fast and Brett Pesce pre-game, Rod Brind’Amour shares that Fast (upper-body injury) will not be available for the rest of the playoffs.

“That one is tough. Tough for him. He’s put in all that work.”

He also… pic.twitter.com/tXgCciArQQ

— Walt Ruff (@WaltRuff) April 25, 2024

Defenseman Scott Mayfield is out for the Islanders.

What to Look for

While Game 3 felt like a must-win game, Game 4 is just that for the Islanders.

After making a late-season push to make the playoffs after making a coaching change, the Islanders could be a solid pick to at least pick up one win in this series.

The Islanders outshot the Hurricanes and outhit them in Game 3 but failed to outscore them as Carolina scored on two of its first six shots.

It was a much better effort after Carolina outshot the Islanders 39-12 in the last game. There are too many proven playoff performers on this Islanders team not to believe that they will find a way to win Game 4.

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Hurricanes vs Islanders Prediction

Islanders 3, Hurricanes 2

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