Morning Coffee: Tkachuk delivers for FanDuel bettors in quadruple overtime

Matthew Tkachuk anytime goal scorer was the most popular goal prop for Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals at FanDuel.

It took a little longer than expected, but anyone who made that bet woke up happy this morning.

Tkachuk scored with 13 seconds remaining in quadruple overtime to give the Florida Panthers a 3-2 win in the sixth-longest game in NHL history.

The Panthers improved to 5-0 this postseason in games that go to overtime.

Florida has been the betting underdog in all of those games, recording four of those five wins as the visiting team.

Can the Panthers pull off another series upset to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals?

As it stands, Florida has been the most profitable NHL team to bet on at FanDuel dating back to Game 5 of its first round series against the Boston Bruins.

This is the Morning Coffee for Friday May 19, 2023.

Tkachuk delivers in quadruple overtime

If you bet on Tkachuk to score and Florida to win last night it was worth staying up to watch the finish.

The Panthers improved to 8-1 straight up and 9-0 on the puck line dating back to April 26.

Florida was the betting underdog in every single of those games.

Tkachuk was the overtime hero last night as the Panthers beat the Hurricanes as a +120 money line underdog at FanDuel.

After winning Game 1 on the road, Florida went from +120 to -170 to win the series at FanDuel.

Carolina went from a -145 favourite to a +140 underdog.

While the Hurricanes can bounce right back with a win in Game 2 on home ice as a -154 favourite on Saturday night, last night’s Panthers’ win had my group chat buzzing about what the Cardiac Cats have done so far this postseason.

The Boston Bruins were the favourite to win the Stanley Cup at FanDuel entering the first round of the playoffs.

The Toronto Maple Leafs were the favourite to win it all entering the second round.

Carolina was the favourite entering the third round.

Can the Panthers make it 3-for-3 knocking off the updated Stanley Cup favourite in each of the first three rounds of the postseason?

As the most profitable team to bet on over the past three weeks, no one can afford to overlook Florida.

Meanwhile, with the Panthers’ win over the Hurricanes last night, the Vegas Golden Knights have emerged as the Stanley Cup favourite at FanDuel.

Vegas is currently -126 to win Game 1 against the Dallas Stars tonight at FanDuel and -140 to win the series.

Dallas is currently +105 to win tonight and +115 to advance.

Unlike a year ago, this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs have been as unpredictable as they get.

Hopefully for our team, the Stars can earn at least a split on the road in these first two games and take control of home ice advantage in the series.

Murray lifts Nuggets to 2-0 series lead

The Denver Nuggets have been talked about a lot in the TSN offices over the past couple of weeks.

As someone who bet on the Nuggets to beat the Phoenix Suns, the Nuggets to beat the Los Angeles Lakers, the Nuggets to win the NBA championship and Nikola Jokic to win NBA Finals MVP, it’s been a fun ride.

Jokic delivered a casual 23 points, 17 rebounds, 12 assists and three steals as Denver rallied from down 11 points to beat the Lakers 108-103 in Game 2 last night.

Jokic has recorded a triple-double in four straight playoff games, matching Wilt Chamberlain for the longest streak in NBA postseason history.

Meanwhile, Jamal Murray went off for a game-high 37 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and four steals, including a monster 23-point fourth quarter.

Murray’s 23 points were tied for the third-most points in the fourth quarter of a playoff game over the past 25 postseasons.

With Jokic and Murray leading the way, the Nuggets are now the favourite to win the title at +115 at FanDuel.

Denver is -450 to win the Western Conference Finals.

The Lakers opened -3.5 for Game 3 back in Los Angeles on Saturday night, and that number has since been bet up to -5.5 at FanDuel.

While I haven’t bet it yet, I have considered what number I would need to bet on the Nuggets to cover on the road on Saturday night.

A FanDuel Best Bet for Friday night

On Thursday, we cashed our FanDuel Best Bet again with the NRFI in the matinee game between the Washington Nationals and Miami Marlins.

As a couple of friends and followers pointed out, if you were late to the Morning Coffee then you missed the chance to cash.

That shouldn’t be an issue tonight as we look to finish the week with a perfect 6-0 record with the FanDuel Best Bets in the column.

I’ve got another NRFI circled, but it’s for the latest game on the Friday MLB slate.

The Marlins have been very good to me, as we cashed their NRFI as the FanDuel Best Bet in Wednesday and Thursday’s columns.

While Sandy Alcantara has struggled for Miami overall of late, the NRFI is 8-0 in his starts this season.

The Giants’ offence has been buzzing of late, but the NRFI has cashed in 65 per cent of their games this season, including six of Anthony DeSclafani’s eight starts.

While I’m slightly concerned about Alcantara’s recent numbers, I believe he can get us three outs tonight.

I’ll lay the juice with the Marlins/Giants NRFI with the hope that we can cash our seventh straight FanDuel Best Bet and complete the perfect week.

Good luck to everyone who tails!

Hopefully, we can cash another NRFI and complete the sweep.