darrell,

Another winner last night pushing us up to 63% on the postseason and 83% since the start of April (39-9). Three picks today on the ice...

Please Tell A Friend about this newsletter and they'll thank you!

Keep your head up and stick on the ice, darrell!

Game: New Jersey at New York Rangers (2:05 PM Eastern)
Pick: 1 star on New Jersey -215

Total domination. New Jersey has now won 6-1, 4-1 and 3-0. The Rangers have lost their last eight games by a combined score of 33-11. They haven't scored more than one goal in the last five games. They are, plain and simple, an embarrassment right now. New Jersey is the exact opposite - the hottest team in the NHL. Over that same span (eight games), they haven't lost and have won by an average of 4.1 to 1.5. We don't even have the motivation here from the Rangers to try to salvage this series. They are done and they know it. Devils here.

After a fairly disasterous start to the series, Detroit sent a message and took control by winning by two in Edmonton in the crucial fourth game. Edmonton has put up a great show but #1 seeds advance out of this round for a reason. You can get them down but it's near impossible to knock them out. Both teams know this is a very important game and will likely decide the series winner. Detroit cannot afford to return to Edmonton facing elimination. This home game is their shot and they will take advantage of it. Detroit has struggled but they are 18-1 at home after losing 2 of their last 3 games. Despite their struggles in the first two games of this series, remember that they scored 3.6 per game at home this season while allowing 2.6. Edmonton played over their head in those two games as they were very average during the season on the road going 22-21, allowing 3 goals per game. Detroit here.

This series has been a battle as the teams have traded wins. It's Calgary's turn. Anaheim's got offense but the Flames are now 10-1 in the second half of this season at home against good offensive teams that average 30+ shots on goal. And, the Ducks are allowing 3.3 goals per game in to Calgary. Calgary averaged 1.8 goals per game allowed at home this season - 1.8! Defense over offense here as we back Calgary.