Seven of the eight first-round series in the Stanley Cup Playoffs have already begun, with tonight`s Game 1 between the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning.
Despite the Lightning having home-ice advantage, the Panthers are considered slight favorites to advance to the next round. The Panthers also have the fifth-lowest Stanley Cup odds, while the Lightning are tied for seventh with the Washington Capitals.
In Game 1, Tampa Bay is the favorite, and Florida is the underdog. The total over/under is set at 5.5.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates each NHL game 10,000 times and provides predictions, including player prop bets. Three top-rated prop bets from SportsLine are presented for the first game between the Panthers and Lightning.
Panthers-Lightning SGP (+447)
- Nikita Kucherov Under 1.5 points (-184): 5 stars
- Gustav Forsling Over 1.5 shots on goal (-190): 4 stars
- Aleksander Barkov Under 0.5 points (+132): 4 stars
Kucherov led the NHL in points this season but has scored less than 1.5 points in recent games against teams with a winning record. Forsling averages 3.0 shots per game in his last road games. Barkov has scored less than 0.5 points in eight of his last ten games.
