The Anaheim Ducks stormed back to win the Pacific Division and now find themselves in the driver’s seat in their half of the Western Conference. They allowed fewer goals than any other team in the West and John Gibson is looking to prove that he has what it takes to lead the Ducks to some playoff wins after last year’s disappointing performance. He was hurt for most of the past six weeks but looked strong since his return and posted a shutout in his most recent appearance. Gibson will look to outduel Brian Elliott of the Calgary Flames in the first round.
Log on to BookMaker online for all the latest NHL puck-lines, totals, moneylines, and props. BookMaker Sportsbook provides the earliest NHL odds and is your one stop shop for all your betting needs. The Anaheim Ducks and Calgary Flames will clash with a trip to the Western Conference semis on the line. You can watch all the action on the NBC family of networks.
Stanley Cup Playoff Odds at BookMaker.euAnaheim Ducks -165Calgary Flames +144
Series Schedule
Game 1: Calgary at Anaheim (4/13, 10:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, CBC)
Game 2: Calgary at Anaheim (4/15, 10:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, CBC)
Game 3: Anaheim at Calgary (4/17, 10 p.m. ET, NBCSN, CBC)
Game 4: Anaheim at Calgary (4/19, 10 p.m. ET, USA, CBC)
Game 5: Calgary at Anaheim (If Necessary, 4/21, TBD)
Game 6: Anaheim at Calgary (If Necessary, 4/23, TBD)
Game 7: Calgary at Anaheim (If Necessary, 4/25, TBD)
Key Players
It’s been a banner year for Rickard Rakell. The fifth-year man has really come on and developed as a scoring talent and led the team with 33 goals. However, for as good as he has been in the regular season, he is still looking to make his mark in hockey’s second season. Rakell has tallied just three goals and two assists in 27 career postseason games and will be counted on to produce in the playoffs with Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf having down years.
Johnny Gaudreau did not build off of last season like the Flames were expecting. After topping the 30-goal mark last year, Calgary was hoping that he could lead the charge to spark a fire in the Flames offense. That failed to materialize as he only registered 18 goals this season and his scoring percentage fell from 14 percent the past two years to under 10 percent this year. Gaudreau still ended up leading Calgary in points and will look to build off the nine points in 11 games he registered in the 2014-15 postseason.
Key Stats
Anaheim has one of the best defenses in the NHL and for the most part they keep Gibson out of trouble. The Ducks allow less than 30 shots a game and also have the fourth-best penalty kill in all of hockey. However, that is somewhat threatened with the injury to Cam Fowler. Fowler hurt his knee last week and is expected to miss at least this series. It’s a big blow to lose such a talented defenseman, but the Ducks corps softens it somewhat.
Calgary has to limit the penalties that killed it during the regular season at times. The Flames were the most penalized team in hockey and although they were alright on the penalty kill, no team wants to play down a man. The good news for them is that the Ducks are the second-most penalized team in the NHL and that means both teams will have a lot of chances.
Free NHL Series ATS Pick
Although Fowler is out, it’s hard to see a way that Calgary can win this series. Brian Elliott was solid in goal for the Blues last postseason, but the defense in front of him is much worse now and the Ducks have a more talented roster. We don’t understand why Anaheim is such a short favorite under these circumstances, but don’t think twice and take the Ducks.
NHL Playoff Series Odds: Ducks win the series 4-1
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