Sunday’s Game Props: Pick the Over for Game 6
Brad Hayward
2023-05-14
Since I inadvertently put out a DFS article yesterday, I felt I owed the site a true props piece for all mothers to bet today. It's possible that the outline for tonight's 10PM ET contest was set last evening, also. To review, I picked Seattle to extend the series, the score to be 6-4 (it was 6-3), and Jordan Eberle to be my DFS captain (2 goals, one assist). Not bad.
Gold selection: Pick the OVER (O 6.5, -130).
Adin Hill vs. Jack Campbell, against the barrage coming from both sides here? The Oilers and Knights both play up-tempo games, and both squads plan to outscore their inconsistencies in net. If it's Stuart Skinner, same argument. BUT do remember here that in the last four games of this series, only once would this wager have paid (4-3 Vegas on Friday). Both Darnell Nurse and Alex Pietrangelo are back from their suspensions, too – but both of these defensemen push the offense as much as helping the D.
Silver selection: Chandler Stephenson will have a power-play point (+230)
Ok, this one's a bigger stretch. Stephenson, acquired from Washington in late 2019 as a 25-year-old who'd never scored even 20 points in a season, has 64 and 65 in his past two years, and already ten points in Vegas' ten games in these playoffs. He's their face-off guy over Jack Eichel on the first PP unit. It's likely to be a hard-fought, physical game (read that: penalties), so special teams will be featured. So a +230 bet seems like decent odds. And…
Bronze selection: The Golden Knights will win (+160 ML)
This has been the year of the visiting teams in the Stanley Cup playoffs, and the trend continues. I'm basically favoring Las Vegas because of their superior defensive play. Not just that the Knights led the NHL in blocked shots – Alec Martinez and Brayden McNabb individually were the top two, and Pietrangelo seventh in the league – but their forward group, and specifically William Karlsson, have had the commitment to defend over anything I've seen from the Oilers. Offense wins games, yes, but defense ultimately gets a team to the Conference Final.
DraftKings, in an unplanned (?) contradiction, has Edmonton strongly favored (-190 ML) for this game, yet the Eastern Final first game already posted for 7:10 PM Tuesday (not yet official per NHL). Just to confuse us, eh?
Happy Mother's Day to all moms. Mine passed away years ago, and I love her still.