Back Hurricanes To Beat Panthers

Hurricanes vs. Panthers, 7:07 ET

Hockey was very kind to us last night. I mentioned in the article that I was looking to avenge a loss. Not only did we get back the unit I lost us the night before, but we cashed a +160 sprinkle on the team total of the Senators. It was a nice night for us and now I look to have another one as we head back to the ice. Tonight we get two of the best squads from last season squaring off: The Carolina Hurricanes take on the Florida Panthers.

Carolina has picked up where they left off last season, for the most part. Coming into tonight's contest, they are 8-5-0 overall and 4-5-0 on the road. That road record leaves a bit to be desired, but it can be a challenge to start the season with this being their 10th road game in 13 games. They should be a team we start to focus on betting as they get more home games in their schedule soon. Carolina still seems to play at a pretty fast pace, and offensively they have a lot of guys that can find the back of the net. They are averaging 3.38 goals per game on almost 35 shot attempts per game. What is a little less impressive to me is that they have allowed just under 26 shot attempts per game (which is impressive) and they are allowing 3.39 goals per game (which is a lot for such a low number of shot attempts). That means that one out of every nine shots is going past their goaltender. The defense seems to be doing a good enough job of keeping opponents from scoring, but their goalies have to do their part too. Tonight, it is expected that Antti Raanta is in the net for the Hurricanes. He's a pretty good goalie, but with a .877 save percentage, you need to start saving more of the few attempts you're facing. Of the games he has spent the majority of the game in net, he hasn't had to face more than 25 shot attempts. Maybe he is bored?

WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 08: A general view of the Florida Panthers jersey logo during the second period of the game against the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena on April 8, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)

I would guess any boredom that Raanta would feel from a lack of shot attempts at him will be negated by an aggressive Florida Panthers team. Last year's Stanley Cup runner-up, the Panthers are off to a strong enough start themselves. Right now they sit at 7-4-1, with a strong 4-1-0 record on their home ice. Their defense and offense have an identical 2.92 goals per game, and goals allowed per game average at the moment but with the amount of shots they get, I think we can see that start to separate in their offenses' favor. The Panthers are coming off of back-to-back overtime wins, which isn't anything ridiculous in terms of additional playing time (it was a total of less than two additional minutes of ice time in the two games combined), but it shows me they aren't playing at their highest level. Tonight they are putting Bob in the net to stop the Hurricanes. Sergei Bobrovsky is one of the better netminders in the league and has put together a good start to this season with a 6-3-1 record and a 2.71 goals against per game average. After shutting out the Red Wings three starts ago, he has struggled with allowing at least three goals in his past two contests.

I think the Hurricanes are the fresher and more aggressive team. The Panthers are a very talented team, and you know the effort to win the game will be there. I wish I had a better read on the total, but I feel like both goalies are capable of allowing three passed them in this one, and producing a shutout. It is a strange dynamic. I do think we are getting a bit of value on the Hurricanes in this game though. Bob is probably the better goalie, but the Panthers are allowing more shots to go at him. If Raanta can stay alert tonight, he has a better chance of stopping Florida. I'll take the Hurricanes at -130 to win the game.

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