Total Goes Up Amidst Hot Scoring on Both Sides
Just when it appeared like the New York Rangers and Pittsburgh Penguins were headed for a relatively “low” scoring game, four goals were scored in the span of three minutes leading to another game total that went over six. Despite the sportsbook pushing the total up to 6½, it is likely we still see the ‘over’ cash.
Let’s check the latest NHL lines, stats, injury reports, and NHL odds for Rangers vs Penguins. We’ve plenty of NHL picks and predictions.
The Rangers Stay Hot
For all of the New York Rangers’ flaws, they are one hell of a team to watch. The Rangers appeared dead-in-the-water for the first half of the game when the Penguins led them 2-0. Then, Sidney Crosby goes out with an injury and the floodgates open. The “Blueshirts” would score three goals in under three minutes to take the lead.
The Penguins led 4-1…
The Rangers then scored 3 unanswered goals in the 2nd period and tied up. 🤯
(🎥: @NHL_On_TNT) pic.twitter.com/mip7ziy8uE
— theScore (@theScore) May 8, 2022
Even with Jake Guentzel tying things up for the Penguins, the Rangers would clinch the game off of Filip Chytil’s stick on the power play (PP). For the fourth straight game, the team that had the edge in PP scoring won the game. In fact, every winner from the series has scored at least once on special teams.
The Rangers are firing at 25 percent with the extra man advantage, which is a win for them considering the penalty kill is supposed to be a Pittsburgh specialty. And without Crosby, who has dominated every time he’s on the ice, New York may just rally like it did in Game 5.
The Penguins Can Roll With or Without Crosby
All the talk of Conor McDavid and Auston Matthews has folks forgetting about Sidney Crosby, who is arguably still the best player in the game. That much is certain now that he has nine points and Pittsburgh is on the positive in relative corsi for percentage and offensive zone start percentage.
This Penguins is not all just about Crosby – Evgeni Malkin, Bryan Rust, and Jake Guentzel have been solid for the most part and on the defensive end, Kris Letang is still an elite defenseman., but without their team captain, the Penguins will need to be even more peerless.
Louis Domingue is shaky in net and will need more protection against the high-powered Rangers. He may be why the Penguins stay underdogs on the NHL odds as he is in the negative in goals saved above expectations at -1.6. But if Pittsburgh can recapture their dominant play on special teams, this series may be over.
Rangers vs Penguins Head-to-Head
Even with Sidney Crosby’s injury and a win in Game 5, the New York Rangers are sizable underdogs to win the series. New York is now at +180 when you bet online and as history suggests, only one of every ten teams comes back after falling behind 3-1 in the series.
Rangers vs Penguins Game Information
- Game: Rangers (54-26-7) vs Penguins (49-27-11)
- Location: PPG Paints Arena
- Day/Time: Friday, May 13, 7:00 p.m. ET
- Live stream: NHL.TV
Rangers vs Penguins Betting Lines
Rangers vs Penguins Prediction
Monitor Sidney Crosby’s status prior to puck drop, however, with or without him, we don’t expect the high-octane style of hockey to change. All games in the series have gone over the total with each game averaging to 8.4 goals or 7.8 if we remove the empty-netters.
These are teams with plenty of offensive punch on both 5v5 and the power play. Add to this the shaky goaltending of Domingue and Igor Shesterkin when he’s in Pittsburgh and we may have 7+ goals again.
Pick: Over 6½ (EVEN)
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