Bruins Open as -150 Favorites Over Hurricanes in Eastern Conference Round 1 Series
- The Boston Bruins will play the Carolina Hurricanes in Round 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs
- Boston opened as -150 favorites in the best-of-seven series
- Read below for our series preview and best bet
The Boston Bruins have opened as -150 series favorites over the Carolina Hurricanes in Round 1 of the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Boston went 0-3-0 in the round-robin seeding round, while the Hurricanes earned a berth in the postseason by sweeping the New York Rangers in the qualifying round.
Despite struggling in the round-robin round, Boston is still listed with the second-best odds out of any NHL team in the 2020 Stanley Cup odds. Carolina currently has the 10th-best odds.
Will the Bruins rebound to beat Carolina in Round 1? Should you bet on the Hurricanes as series underdogs?
Hurricanes vs Bruins Series Odds
| Team | Odds at DraftKings |
|---|---|
| Carolina Hurricanes | +125 |
| Boston Bruins | -150 |
Odds taken Aug. 9
Boston and Carolina only played once during the 2019-20 regular season. Backup goaltender Jaroslav Halak led the Bruins to a 2-0 shutout victory over the Hurricanes in early-December.
Bruins Stumble In Round Robin
The Bruins finished the regular season with the best points percentage in the NHL (.714), but have fallen to the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference due to a lacklustre performance in the round-robin seeding round. Boston went 0-3 against Tampa Bay, Philadelphia and Washington, managing just four total goals in the process.
I’d be more optimistic about Boston rebounding in Round 1 if it weren’t for the very short layoff. This is an insanely compressed schedule and the Bruins haven’t looked anything like themselves through one exhibition game and three round-robin games. Momentum is crucial in the playoffs, and the Bruins have none of it heading into Round 1.
One of the primary reasons Boston is being favored in this series is due to how they handled Carolina in the 2019 postseason. The Bruins put an end to Carolina’s miracle playoff run last year by sweeping them convincingly in the Eastern Conference Final.
Aho, Svechnikov Lead Determined Canes
Carolina loves to be underestimated in the postseason, and opening as underdogs in this series is just more fuel for the fire. The Hurricanes swept a very good New York Rangers team in the play-in round and got an outstanding performance from their top line of Andrei Svechnikov, Sebastian Aho and Teuvo Teravainen.
This Sebastian Aho goal is NSFW. 🤢#NHLonSN pic.twitter.com/ZhsPWCATsk
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) August 5, 2020
Svechnikov and Aho are both averaging a goal-per-game this postseason, while Boston’s top line of Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak have yet to find the back of the net this summer. A slumping top line going up against the hottest first line from the qualifying round is not a good recipe for success.
Hurricanes vs Bruins Season Stats
| 3.19 (11th) | Goals P/G | 3.24 (9th) |
| 22.3% (8th) | PP% | 25.2% (2nd) |
| 2.84 (11th) | Goals Against P/G | 2.39 (1st) |
| 84.0% (4th) | PK% | 84.2% (3rd) |
Another positive for Carolina is their goaltending. Both Petr Mrazek and James Reimer were sensational against New York, with Mrazek posting a .940 save percentage in two starts and Reimer stopping 37 of 38 shots in the other game. Add in the news that top blueliner Dougie Hamilton is expected to play in Round 1 and this is a very complete Canes’ squad.
Bet on Carolina
There’s no doubting how good this Boston team is. They posted a 44-14-12 record in the regular season and are being favored in this series for a reason. They simply haven’t looked like that team from the regular season, and there’s very little time for them to figure it out.
https://twitter.com/bruins_stats/status/1292532941021732864?s=20
Taking the Hurricanes at plus-money in this series is great value. Carolina looked liked one of the best teams in the entire league in the qualifying round as they outscored the Rangers 11-4. They’re going to be out for revenge after what happened in 2019 and have the talent to pull off the upset.
The Hurricanes also had some of the best advanced stats in the entire NHL during the regular season (54.30 CF%, 53.59 FF%) and have carried that strong possession play into the playoffs. With two rising superstars in Aho and Svechnikov and a returning top defenseman in Dougie Hamilton, Carolina is one of my favorite underdogs in Round 1.
Pick: Carolina Hurricanes to win series (+125)
Brady is the lead NHL and College Football editor at Sports Betting Dime, where he specializes in betting odds and data-driven analysis. Brady has over 10 years experience working in sports media, with work published by outlets such as ESPN, CBS Sports, Yahoo! Sports and Fox Sports.
