Devils vs. Rangers Game 7 prediction for puck line, total & moneyline
It all comes down to this. The New York Rangers and New Jersey Devils square off in Game 7 on Monday at 8 p.m. at Prudential Center.
Facing elimination, the Rangers responded in a big way by overcoming a sluggish start in Saturday night's Game 6 and winning 5-2 at Madison Square Garden.
The winner of Monday night's game will face the Carolina Hurricanes, who defeated the New York Islanders in six games.
Here are the odds, my picks and prediction on who will advance to the second round with odds powered by Tipico Sportsbook.
Devils vs. Rangers puck line: Rangers +1.5 (-260)
In this all-or-nothing Game 7, the betting public is divided on who will cover this puck line. While 83 percent of the money is on New York to cover the +1.5 spread, 65 percent of the bets placed are on New Jersey to win by multiple goals.
While the Devils did get a 4-0 victory on home ice in Game 5, the Rangers owned the first two games at The Rock in this series as they won both Games 1 & 2 by a final score of 5-1.
Wager on this matchup being the closest one yet and a one-goal affair for just the second time this series.
Devils vs. Rangers total: Under 5.5 goals (-135)
Failing to solve Devils goalie Akira Schmid in Games 3-5, the Rangers finally broke through in Game 6. New York netted five goals against the 22-year-old after scoring just two goals in three games once Schmid replaced starter Vitek Vanecek in Game 3.
The Rangers are 8-3-1 to the under in their previous 12 road games, while the Devils have better trends to the over.
With every goal being a difference maker, I expect we see a tightly-contested game with very few penalties called and the lowest-scoring game of this series. Bet there being five or fewer goals scored in Game 7.
Devils vs. Rangers moneyline: Rangers (+100)
Similar to the puck line, the betting market is split on who will win Game 7 as 52 percent of the bets are on the Devils, but 56 percent of the money is on the Rangers to win.
While the Devils had their best turnaround in franchise history, I believe their season comes to an end with the Rangers' depth and experience being too much to overcome.
The Rangers will advance to the conference semifinals for the second straight year.
My Best Bets
Place a wager on the Rangers moneyline (+100), to cover the +1.5 puck line (-260) and the under 5.5 total goals scored in Game 7 on Tipico Sportsbook.
