Golden Knights vs Blackhawks Game 3 Odds and Pick – Aug 15

• The Vegas Golden Knights have taken a 2-0 series lead on the Chicago Blackhawks
• Game 3 of the best-of-seven series will be played on Saturday, August 15, at 8:00 PM ET
• See the odds and best bets, below

The Vegas Golden Knights have taken a 2-0 series lead over the Chicago Blackhawks. Game 3 of the best-of-seven series will be played on Saturday, August 15 at 8:00 PM ET, at the NHL’s Western Conference bubble in Edmonton.

Vegas has opened as -177 favorites in the Blackhawks vs Golden Knights odds for Game 3, while the Blackhawks are +152 underdogs. That’s a drop-off from the Game 2 odds where the Golden Knights were listed as heavier -200 favorites.

Is Chicago capable of slowing down this Vegas powerhouse?

 Blackhawks vs Golden Knights Game 3 Odds

Odds taken August 13.

Knights Continue to Shine 

The Golden Knights extended their winning streak to seven games as they beat Chicago 4-3 in OT in Game 2 to take a 2-0 series lead. Reilly Smith scored the game-winning goal, while Jonathan Marrasehault had a pair of assists. Smith now has an impressive 17 goals and 48 points in 50 career postseason contests.

The Knights managed the victory on Thursday without their top goal-scorer from the regular season, Max Pacioretty. The former Hab was ruled “unfit to play” prior to puck drop. Luckily for Vegas, they have plenty of depth on offense. Paul Stastny, Mark Stone, and Tomas Nosek all got on the board in Game 2 and 13 different players have now scored for Vegas since play resumed.

Goaltender Robin Lehner didn’t have his best outing in Game 2, but he remains undefeated in his Golden Knights career. Not only is Lehner fitting in well with his new squad, but his .926 all-time playoff save percentage is proving he can deliver when the games matter the most.

Kane, Crawford Impress for Blackhawks

After both players turned in disappointing performances in Game 1, forward Patrick Kane and goaltender Corey Crawford rebounded in a big way in Game 2. Kane assisted on all three Chicago goals in the loss, while Crawford stopped 32 of 36 shots.

This pass from Patrick Kane: ABSURD. 😳@NHLBlackhawks | #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/ZdC8ec3xdh

— NHL on NBC Sports (@NHLonNBCSports) August 13, 2020

The Blackhawks showed some fight, rallying from a 2-0 deficit, and came close to completing the comeback as Dylan Strome rang the crossbar in overtime. Another positive for Chicago is that 19-year-old forward Kirby Dach scored his first career playoff goal in Game 2.

The issue for the Blackhawks all season has been defense. They’ve given up a whopping 73 shots in two games against Vegas and have surrendered 72 high-danger shots since the start of the postseason, which is easily the most allowed by any team.

What’s the Best Bet?

I went into this series thinking Chicago was capable of stealing a game or two, but Vegas is proving to be a superior team in almost every facet. They’ve outshot Chicago 73-45 over two games and would’ve taken Game 2 in regulation if it weren’t for the superb play of Crawford.

Moments like these >>> pic.twitter.com/op9ff2wsFB

— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) August 13, 2020

It’s a positive for Chicago that Kane was flying in Game 2 given his playoff history, but the defense is becoming a major problem against a very deep and talented Vegas offense. When you go back to the regular season, the Golden Knights have lost just two games since mid-February.

Vegas is getting terrific production from all four forward lines and have a reliable netminder in Lehner. Chicago is getting significantly outchanced and outshot in this series and haven’t shown enough to warrant an underdog bet for Game 3. Take this Vegas powerhouse on the moneyline.

Pick: Vegas Golden Knights Moneyline (-177)