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Morning Coffee: How will Panthers respond in Game 2?
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The Florida Panthers have been the Cinderella story of this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs.
They’ve defied the odds every step of the way.
The Panthers’ improbable run hit a speed bump in a 5-2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final on Saturday night.
Tonight, they’ll get the opportunity to respond.
Florida hasn’t lost back-to-back games in more than a month.
The Cardiac Cats will need to keep that streak alive as an underdog tonight in order to avoid the dreaded 0-2 hole.
Can the Panthers pull off the upset on the road for the first Stanley Cup win in franchise history?
If they don’t, they could be in big trouble.
Teams that go up 2-0 in a best-of-seven Stanley Cup Final are 48-5 all-time, including 38-3 when going up 2-0 at home.
This is the Morning Coffee for Monday, June 5, 2023.
How will Panthers respond in Game 2 of Stanley Cup Final?
It’s been more than a month since the Panthers lost back-to-back games.
However, that doesn’t mean anything now heading into a crucial Game 2 on the road tonight.
Who needs to step up the most in order for Florida to bounce back with a win on the road as a +115 money line underdog tonight?
Sergei Bobrovsky entered the Stanley Cup Final as the favourite to win the Conn Smythe Trophy at FanDuel following a brilliant stretch.
However, the Golden Knights made Bobrovsky look average in the series opener, scoring four goals on 33 shots.
It was the first time Bobrovsky allowed more than two goals in a game since Game 7 against the Boston Bruins in the first round.
Meanwhile, the margin for Game 1 was much slimmer than the final score indicated.
According to Stathletes, Vegas had the slight edge in scoring chances with an 18-16 margin, while Florida led 4-2 in high-danger scoring chances.
Adin Hill stepped up in Game 1 with 33 saves, improving to 8-3 with a 2.06 goals-against average and a .938 save percentage this postseason.
Hill is currently +500 to win the Conn Smythe Trophy at FanDuel.
In order to bounce back with a win tonight, the Panthers will absolutely need Bobrovsky to give them the edge in the goaltending matchup.
Heat respond in Game 2 of NBA Finals
The Miami Heat were 160-to-1 to win the NBA title entering the playoffs.
After winning Game 2 of the NBA Finals as a +270 ML underdog at FanDuel last night, Miami is three wins away.
The Heat rallied from a 15-point deficit to beat the Denver Nuggets 111-108.
It was Miami’s seventh double-digit comeback this postseason, which is tied for the most in a single postseason over the past 25 years.
It was also their 10th upset win in these playoffs, which is a new NBA record.
The Nuggets opened -1.5 for Game 3 in Miami on Wednesday night.
I immediately locked in Denver -1.5 as a FanDuel Best Bet for that contest.
While the Heat responded on the road in Game 2, it appeared as if the Nuggets took their foot off the gas up big in the second half, which is something that head coach Mike Malone referred to after the game.
I believe Denver will be locked in for Game 3. The Nuggets have been very good to me this postseason.
I’ll lock in Denver -1.5 as a FanDuel Best Bet for Game 2.
A FanDuel Best Bet for Monday night
The Miami Marlins have been good to us so far this MLB season, with a NRFI rate above 80 per cent.
Tonight’s starter, Braxton Garrett, owns an 8-2 NRFI record this season.
Meanwhile, the Kansas City Royals rank 19th in the majors with an average of 0.51 first inning runs scored per game this season, but that number drops to 0.30 in road games where they own the seventh-worst mark in baseball.
Kansas City will turn to Carlos Hernandez for the start.
Hernandez hasn’t been great this season, but he’s 2-0 to the NRFI, and he is in a good spot against the Miami offence.
I’ll take the No Run First Inning in tonight’s game between the Royals and Marlins at -113 as my FanDuel Best Bet for Monday night.