Posted at 10:00 AM EST. Odds subject to change.

Pinnacle  -102 BET365 -105 Sportsinteraction -105 888Sport  -105

Carolina -102 over New York

7:07 PM EST. OT included. We catch the Rangers coming back to the Big Apple after a five-game Western Conference road trip that saw them make stops in Seattle (win, 4-1), Calgary (win, 3-1), Edmonton (win, 3-0), Vancouver (win, 4-3), and Winnipeg (win, 3-2). If you are keeping track at home, that’s five straight wins, bringing the Rags record to 7-2 this season. That record is impressive, but if you watched the Rangers play in Western Canada, you know that they were not the better team on the ice in four straight games against the Flames, Oilers, Canucks, and Jets. Those four teams dominated the puck possession numbers and had more high-danger scoring chances than the Rags, but none could crack that armor and take home a win. This is the Rags best nine-game start since 2009-10 so their stock is soaring right now, yet oddsmakers made them a tiny favorite against a struggling team. Why?

The Hurricanes are superior to the Rags in every way, but one, but we cannot predict if Frederik Andersen or whoever starts for the ‘Canes will be hot or not, and the same can be said of New York’s Igor Shesterkin. The latter has the pedigree, but he’s also been bailing his team out nearly every night. As for Carolina, this is still one of the strongest, well-oiled machines in the league. The ‘Canes are analytics darlings once again, leading the charge in puck possession numbers across the NHL. Rarely are the Hurricanes outplayed, and that is likely to be true again tonight. If the Rags are flat tonight after that long road trip, the ‘Canes are going to have plenty of chances to light up the scoresheet and send us to the pay window. If the Rags are not flat, the 'Canes will still have plenty of chances.

Sherwood

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