Penguins vs Islanders Game 6 Odds, Preview and Picks

• The Penguins and Islanders play Game 6 of their first-round Stanley Cup playoff series on Wednesday, May 26th (6:30 pm ET)
• Ilya Sorokin slammed the door shut after allowing two early goals as he stopped 48 of 50 shots in the Game 5 win.
• Read below for the odds, game preview, and betting pick

The New York Islanders and Pittsburgh Penguins clash once again. Game 5 will be played on Monday, May 24th (7pm ET) at Nassau Veterans Memorial Colosseum and will be broadcast on NBCSN, CBC, and Sportsnet.

New York is listed as very slight -113 home favorites to win Game 6 of the series after their double-overtime win in Game 5.

Can the New York Islanders finish the series off or will the Pittsburgh Penguins force a Game 7?

Islanders vs Penguins Odds – Game 6

Odds as of May 25th.

What Was Tristan Jarry Thinking?

This Pittsburgh Penguins-New York Islanders series has been full of oddity after oddity. The first game of this series was a 4-3 OT win for the Islanders. If one remembers, two goals beat Jarry glove side when he was holding his glove hand too low. Then, he gave up two goals trying to cheat to the post via Kyle Palmieri (including the overtime winner).

Jarry has had his ups and downs in this series. He is 2-3 with a 2.85 GAA and a .902 save percentage. The Pittsburgh goalie has yielded three or more goals in four of his five starts. If that was not bad enough, there is what happened in Game 5 during the second overtime.

If you look at the space Tristan Jarry had to his left and right, I have no idea why he even thought about going up the middle of the ice pic.twitter.com/iL0PcJCH1K

— Bob Pompeani (@KDPomp) May 25, 2021

Jarry had space on either side and gambled. He had done this twice earlier in the game without incident. Evidently, Josh Bailey either was just in the right place at the right time or he cheated to the middle. Whatever the reason, Bailey looked like the kid at the candy store who just got gifted the biggest chocolate bar. He nearly missed the shot because the Islanders’ forward was so open. Bailey did not and New York won the game to take a 3-2 series lead.

Jarry was contrite afterward. He did not hide and he took full responsibility. For what it is worth, nothing indicates Pittsburgh is even thinking of a goalie change. So, it will be Jarry in net for Pittsburgh as they travel to Long Island.

Sorokin Seizes Opportunity

At first, there were some questions in Game 5 when Sorokin allowed two goals in the first 27+ minutes. Granted, the Penguins had fired more than 25 shots on goal in that span. The young Russian goaltender was under siege in the first 40 minutes as he saw 32 shots come his way. He stopped 30. Also, Sorokin was able to hold firm despite Pittsburgh having 12 of the 15 high-danger scoring chances in regulation.

Sorokin has been the difference-maker in this series.

Ilya Sorokin has a .955 save % … on high danger chances. At some point in this series he is going to break right? He has to.

— BadOpinionHaver (@Brgh4life) May 25, 2021

Is Sorokin going to drop off? No one truly knows but again, the 25-year old goaltender is calm beyond his years. He made the saves he had to and then some. That was the difference between him, Semyon Varlamov, and his opponent Jarry. Sorokin’s three wins in three starts make it his show.

Penguins vs Islanders Series Odds

Best Bet

The Islanders are very slight favorites to win Game 6 and the series because they have the home-ice advantage of “Fort Neverlose”. Also, one has to wonder why the Penguins’ offense just could not convert all of those scoring chances in Game 5. Maybe it is something with New York, their defense, and that goaltender. Then, there is this stat.

“The New York Islanders have a 21-4-3 record at home this season.”

— Joe (@jjoy60) May 25, 2021

For Pittsburgh, there is this: their expected goals for was 2.86 to the Isles’ 1.55. Possession numbers were around 65% and if that continues, Pittsburgh should score a few more goals at some point. Once is an accident and twice is a trend. At this point, maybe New York has Pittsburgh’s number when it counts.

Pick: New York Islanders Moneyline (-113)