Total Play For Game 1 Of Devils Vs Hurricanes

Devils vs. Hurricanes, 3:00 ET

If you don't watch playoff hockey for whatever reason, you're probably missing out. The thing is that hockey has been one of the more entertaining sports for quite some time, specifically during the playoffs. There have been super long games, some blowouts, upsets, you name it, they have it. One of my favorite things is that you can always throw out the regular season with hockey. Now that these teams are in it, the result will be about who gets hottest at the right time. Let's take a look at how we should bet this Game 1 between the Devils and Hurricanes. 

It seems like it would be bad jeju to bet on the Devils on Easter, right? Happy Easter, by the way. The Devils ended their season with a 42-33-7 record and went 23-16-2 on the road this year. For the season, they had one of the lesser versions of an offense for the playoffs. They only are scoring 2.93 goals per game, and are allowing 2.68 goals against doer game. They do take a couple more shots than their opponents in a typical game. They ended their season on a rough stretch, winning just one of their final five. Perhaps they were just gearing up for the playoffs and not trying or it could be signs of a bad stretch from them. They are going to have Jacob Markstrom in the net today with a 26-16-6 regular season record and a strong 2.50 goals against per game average. His save percentage is a bit higher than I would like at just .900, good for only 28th in the league.

Dec 23, 2024; Newark, New Jersey, USA; New Jersey Devils center Jack Hughes (86) celebrates his goal against the New York Rangers during the first period at Prudential Center. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images

The Hurricanes get to host today's game as they finished just ahead of the Devils in the standings. The team is 47-30-5, and did most of their damage at home this season with a 31-9-1 record. That doesn't really bode well for New Jersey. What you have to like about the Hurricanes is their offense. They score 3.24 goals per game. Most of that success is because they are shooting the puck constantly. The team averages almost 32 shots per game, which is about seven more shots than their opponents get off in a game. Their defense isn't great considering they don't allow a ton of shots, because they give up 2.81 goals per game to opponents. Like the Devils, the Hurricanes also struggled to get much success over their last few games only winning once in the last five. I assume they will put Pyotr Kochetkov in the net for them today. Kochetkov had an okay season with a 27-16-3 record and allowing 2.60 goals per game. His save percentage is just .898 as well. He is 19-4 at home, allowing 2.30 goals against. 

This is going to be a pretty tight series, I think. It will, of course, come down to which goaltender gets hotter. I think for this game though that the Hurricanes are the right side, but I'm not recommending to play a -200 favorite. Instead, I think it makes sense to take the over. Kochetkov is better at home, but still allows some goals to slide through. Markstrom will almost certainly allow a few. We are in danger of a 3-2 finish, but I think we could get an empty net goal or something else to help us. Back the over 5.5.

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