NHL
Tuesday, May 10
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Ice picks: Tuesday's best NHL bets
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San Jose Sharks at Detroit Red Wings (-135, 5.5)
The Sharks are finding out that it’s going to take something special to finish off one of the proudest franchises in NHL history.
San Jose led 3-0 in this Western Conference semifinal series but dropped Game 4 by a 4-3 margin then somehow blew a 3-1 third-period lead at home on Sunday and again lost 4-3.
“We were fighting for our lives there,” Darren Helm told the Detroit News after scoring the game-winner on Friday. “Hopefully we can carry that momentum. I think we're gradually getting stronger as a team, really getting after it. We just told ourselves we weren't going to be denied.”
A big reason for Detroit’s turnaround is the emergence of its second line. That unit did not produce a single point in the first three games of this series, but it accounted for all three first-period goals on Friday; Nicklas Lidstrom scored twice, Henrik Zetterberg and Daniel Cleary had two assists apiece, and Todd Bertuzzi tallied a goal and an assist.
Those four players were right back at it on Sunday, paving the way to the three-goal onslaught in the third period of Game 5. Zetterberg and Clearly each had an assist, Clearly scored the game-tying marker, and Lidstrom assisted on the game-winner.
The Wings’ defense, though, needs to pick up the slack. Jimmy Howard has been stellar in goal over the past two games, but still not good enough to keep any of the last three contests from going over the total. The Sharks are simply getting too many good looks.
“For the full night, he gave their team an opportunity to win,” San Jose head coach Todd McLellan told the Detroit News of Howard, following Game 5. “I thought we had a number of chances, two-on-ones, three-on-ones.”
Expect plenty of opportunities for both teams on Tuesday.
Pick: Over
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Tuesday, May 10
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ice picks: Tuesday's best NHL bets
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
San Jose Sharks at Detroit Red Wings (-135, 5.5)
The Sharks are finding out that it’s going to take something special to finish off one of the proudest franchises in NHL history.
San Jose led 3-0 in this Western Conference semifinal series but dropped Game 4 by a 4-3 margin then somehow blew a 3-1 third-period lead at home on Sunday and again lost 4-3.
“We were fighting for our lives there,” Darren Helm told the Detroit News after scoring the game-winner on Friday. “Hopefully we can carry that momentum. I think we're gradually getting stronger as a team, really getting after it. We just told ourselves we weren't going to be denied.”
A big reason for Detroit’s turnaround is the emergence of its second line. That unit did not produce a single point in the first three games of this series, but it accounted for all three first-period goals on Friday; Nicklas Lidstrom scored twice, Henrik Zetterberg and Daniel Cleary had two assists apiece, and Todd Bertuzzi tallied a goal and an assist.
Those four players were right back at it on Sunday, paving the way to the three-goal onslaught in the third period of Game 5. Zetterberg and Clearly each had an assist, Clearly scored the game-tying marker, and Lidstrom assisted on the game-winner.
The Wings’ defense, though, needs to pick up the slack. Jimmy Howard has been stellar in goal over the past two games, but still not good enough to keep any of the last three contests from going over the total. The Sharks are simply getting too many good looks.
“For the full night, he gave their team an opportunity to win,” San Jose head coach Todd McLellan told the Detroit News of Howard, following Game 5. “I thought we had a number of chances, two-on-ones, three-on-ones.”
Expect plenty of opportunities for both teams on Tuesday.
Pick: Over
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