Michael Alexander

Rating: 2 Units

I’m on the Wild +1.5 here. I get why the Golden Knights would be favored and it feels like they have all of the momentum as the Wild continue to fire their best shots and are falling short in recent games. That being said, the majority of these games have been close or have been outright wins for the Wild and I think with their season on the line at home, the Wild put forth a strong showing here and at worst, cover the +1.5 puck line so give me Minnesota +1.5 here.

Rating: 2 Units

Colorado comes into this matchup in a must win situation, but they will be on home ice here. The Avs have been very good at home this season and they are coming off of a 4-0 shutout win in their last home game. Dallas continues to be without some key players, but they have won three of the last four games in this series. I have been very impressed with how Dallas has fought in this series after that 5-1 loss in game one, but I think Colorado will have another dominant performance at home. Take Colorado to get the big win, which will set us up for game seven this weekend. 

Rating: 2 Units

The Kings are 5-4 in their 9 meetings against the Oilers this season, but the Oilers are 3-1 in their 4 meetings in Edmonton. Over is 4-1 in the 5 games of this series. In this Los Angeles Kings vs Edmonton Oilers Prediction, Edmonton is coming as big -160 home favorites. The Oilers are rightfully favored, as they have the momentum in this series, and have been dominating the Kings at home this season. The Oilers have outscored the Kings by 14-8 goals in their last 3 meetings, and they are a different beast at home, while the Kings had been below average on the road throughout the whole season. There is no chance the Oilers will drop this one and have to go to LA for a game 7. I expect the Oilers to get the job done at home and advance to the next round. Take the Edmonton Oilers on the moneyline.

Rating: 2 Units

I had the Clippers before this series began and I still believe they’re the better team and can win it. The Clippers have the depth advantage as the Nuggets lack a bench outside of Westbrook. Oddmakers agreed as the Clippers were decent sized favorites to win the series entering game 5 despite not having home court. Even down 2-3 in the series, the Nuggets aren’t that big of a favorite to advance. With all of that said this line is disrespectful toward the Nuggets. The Clippers have had trouble closing games in this series and they looked awful in a blowout game 5 loss. Also, Harden is being less and less productive and he’s coming off an embarrassing showing. We know Harden’s subpar efforts in the playoffs over his career and if he’s back to that, the Clippers are in trouble. Again, I still like the Clippers as a team and kind of expect this series to go the distance, but I like the value of the points with the Nuggets in game 6. 

Rating: 2 Units

Houck hasn’t pitched well this season and has been roughed up in his last three starts. The Red Sox’ bats have woken up, scoring 30 runs in their last three runs entering Wednesday night. Berrios hasn’t been overwhelming in his work this season and Toronto’s bats have been inconsistent at best. The Blue Jays entered Wednesday losers of eight of their previous nine games and scored two runs or less in six of their previous seven. Boston has been better offensively and after hammering Francis for five homers in three innings Tuesday, they have momentum on their side. Look for the Red Sox to prevail here to take the series.

Rating: 2 Units

The Athletics have won four of their last five games as underdogs against the Rangers. While the Rangers have lost three of their last four games as favorites.

Rating: 2 Units

There is a slight edge for the Rays in this game with Baz on the hill against Lugo. The Rays are 4-1 in his five starts this season while the Royals are just 3-3 in Lugo's six starts. Baz also has more strikeouts and allowed fewer hits per nine innings than Lugo this season. Another area of concern for the Royals is Lugo's propensity for giving up the long ball. He has allowed six home runs this season, and the Rays' new digs, the Yankees' Spring Training facility, have proven to be quite hitter-friendly this season. The Royals are less likely to take advantage, given that they are last in baseball in runs scored and home runs. They are also just 29th in slugging percentage. The Rays will take care of business today and close the series with a win.

Rating: 2 Units

The Cubs have won each of their last six games as road underdogs against the Pirates and have covered the run line in each of their last nine games as road underdogs against National League opponents following a road loss. While the Pirates have lost each of their last seven games against the Cubs following a home win.