The Kings vs Rangers series gets underway tonight to decide the Stanley Cup Champ. I’ve been away from posting for a little while and I actually didn’t get my series picks up for the last two rounds. That said, my first round picks were very good and I’m still up for the playoffs, albeit not by very much.
2014 NHL Playoff Record: 19-17 for +1.16 units.
Let’s get right into it. First I’ll give my series prediction and then follow it up with game 1.
Kings vs Rangers Series Pick
The Kings are the best team in the league when they play their best hockey. Unfortunately for them this doesn’t always happen, which results in a very streaky team that was forced to go to game 7 in each of their 3 series so far this playoffs. An interesting stat is that the most games played to win a Stanley Cup is 25, so if the Kings win the Cup they will either set this record or tie it with a 4-0 sweep of the Rangers.
From top to bottom the Kings have a better team than the Rangers. The high end forwards such as Kopitar, Gaborik, Carter and Williams in the playoffs are superior to those found on the Rangers. The strong depth grinders such as Brown and Richards are better than those found on the Rangers. The young guns playing solid hockey such as Toffoli and Pearson are better than those found on the Rangers. The top defenseman who plays close to half the game in Drew Doughty is better than the top end defenseman on the Rangers. The only place where the Rangers may be better is in goal and the only way the Rangers can expect to win this Stanley Cup is for Lundqvist to absolutely stand on his head.
The Rangers are the worst team that the Kings will have played so far in these playoffs (Sharks, Ducks, Blackhawks) so I don’t expect an experienced team like this to drop the ball in the most important series. I just see far more ways that the Kings win the Stanley Cup than the Rangers in this series so I’m taking the favourites to win fairly easily.
Play: Kings 1.60 (5Dimes)
I think the Kings will be the better team in every game in this series, but Lundqvist will steal one. Look for the Kings to close out the Cup Finals quicker than they did the previous three series.
Play: Kings To Win Series 4-1 5.05 (5Dimes)
Kings vs Rangers Game 1 Pick
You can probably guess by reading above that I like the Kings to win game 1. They have been very good at home throughout the playoffs and will look to get a streak going after winning game 7 in Chicago. The Kings know what it takes to win the Stanley Cup and they will not want to test their luck by going down in another series.
Play: Kings 1.67 (5Dimes)
Tagged with: LA Kings betting • New York Rangers betting • Stanley Cup Finals