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Posted at 2:30 PM EST.

7:35 PM EST. The Islanders are much better served taking back a price than they are spotting one and that’s especially true on the road. On Friday, we pointed that the Islanders have several numbers working in their favor all at the same time and that it’s simply not sustainable. The Islanders are indeed a dangerous offensive squad but in this league you cannot win consistently with shaky defense and weak goaltending, which is exactly why the Senators beat them 6-5 last game. What happens when that production inevitably tails off a bit? What’ll happen is that the Islanders will go into a funk and everyone will be wondering why. Both Jaroslav Halak and Thomas Greiss, who was yanked last game, are extremely unreliable and may very well make up the worst goaltending duo in the NHL (with all due respect to the Sabres and Senators).

Roberto Luongo has regained the form that made him one of the NHL’s very best for years. We have seen a lot of Luongo in the past but it’s been quite some time since he’s looked as good as he has recently. That alone makes the Panthers worth a bet here, that being a home dog with the vastly superior goaltending. Furthermore, the Isles play in Tampa Bay tomorrow night, which they are clearly putting more emphasis on, as their choice to use Greiss tomorrow as opposed to tonight, will attest to. The Panthers are not a great team but what they lack in talent, they more than make up for in effort. It is a rare day when the Panthers don’t play all out for a full 60 minutes and this is a rival that always seems to bring out the best in them. Florida has lost two games in a row, both by one goal to San Jose and Carolina, two possession monsters. A 3-2 setback at Carolina on Saturday was particularly painful, as the Panthers allowed the winning goal with just two seconds left in overtime. Still, the Panthers remain a tough out and the oddsmakers had no fear in making this an evenly priced game when the data shows that the Islanders will take most of the money. Florida begins an important three-game home stand here and the spot looks like a good one.

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