Top NHL Picks and Predictions Today (Game 2 Best Bets for Lightning vs. Panthers and Blues vs. Avalanche)

The two teams I expected to win last night, won, but I got a little bit too aggressive with the Hurricanes by taking them on their puck line. It

Carolina needed overtime to dispose of New York, and the battle of Alberta was everything we could have hoped for. 15 total goals were scored, with the Flames eventually coming out on top with a final score of 9-6.

My NHL Playoff record heading into tonight's Game 2's is 28-26-1 for +1.54 units.

Here are my picks for Thursday night, with all odds given courtesy of WynnBET Sportsbook.

Lightning vs. Panthers Prediction and Pick

Game 1 went exactly as I predicted. The Lightning did a fantastic job of not allowing the Panthers to get many quality scoring chances, and when they did, Andrei Vasilevskiy was there to shut them down.

The Lightning were outshot in the game, but yet they produced 16 high-danger scoring chances compared to the Panthers at 13. Tampa Bay's defense proved they are good enough to shut down Florida, and their offense is going to provide them a few goals of support in each outing.

The Panthers, while exciting to watch, has struggled this postseason and their high-octane offense has sputtered out compared to how it fared in the regular season. With the odds set at the exact same price for Game 2, I see no reason to stop betting on the Lightning.

Pick: Lightning +140

Blues vs. Avalanche Prediction and Pick

The Blues were massively outplayed in Game 1, but I'm not going to lose faith in betting on them as huge underdogs in this series. That was as bad of a performance as you'll see from St. Louis, and the Blues still managed to force overtime.

They'll get out-performed in between the blue lines, but sharp shooting and strong goaltending will keep them in any game they play in.

Should the Avalanche be favored? Absolutely. Should they be -240 favorites against the best shooting team in the NHL? Absolutely not.

Jordan Binnington is going to continue to play fantastic in net for the Blues, and if they can get a few more high quality scoring opportunities in Game 2, they can hang with Colorado. They certainly have value at just under 2/1.

Pick: Blues +200

You can track Iain's bets on Betstamp here.