New York has bounced back many times this postseason, but the task has never been as tall as this. The Lightning started pouring it on early in Game 5, Steven Stamkos scoring in the first minute, and it was 3-0 by the end of the first. A goalie change didn't help and by the final horn it was 8-0 for Tampa Bay. Coach Barry Trotz is a master motivator and he'll draw up a great gameplan for tonight. New York is not going down without a fight and this season, the Islanders are 16-14 SU off a loss. Of the 14 losses, 11 were by a one-goal margin. Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy finished with 21 saves and his fourth career playoff shutout, and Vasilevskiy has a 2.05 goals-against average in this year's playoffs with a .936 save percentage. There is no official word yet as to whether Ilya Sorokin or Semyon Varlamov will start, but the lean is to Varlamov. In what could be the final game at Nassau Coliseum, expect a gritty effort from the home squad as they try and keep their Stanley Cup hopes alive and force Game 7. The OVER is 6-1-2 in New York's past nine games playing with one day of rest and the Islanders are 6-2-1 OVER as home underdogs. The Barn will be rockin' tonight. Take the Islanders on the puck line and book this game to go OVER.
This pick was released to clients on June 23, 2021 at 11:01AM ET.
NHL
Tampa Bay at New York
June 23, 2021
8:00 PM Eastern
1 unit on New York +1.5 goals -205 (puckline) (risk 1 to return 1.49)
Result:
WIN
WIN
1 unit on Game Total OVER 5 -128 (risk 1 to return 1.78)
Result:
PUSH
PUSH
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