Last Updated on April 15, 2010 8:00 am by drew
Sabres-Bruins Pick
The first game of Thursday’s 2010 Stanley Cup Playoff schedule features the Buffalo Sabres taking on the Boston Bruins.
Bet the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs
The Sabres are the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference while the Bruins are the No. 6 seed.
Oddsmakers from online sports book SBGGLOBAL have made Buffalo the favorites to win the series with a money line of -180 while the Senators have a line of +150.
These two teams met six times this season with Bruins taking four of the six games. Boston won the first two contests and then the two split the final four matchups. The Bruins took equal or more shots than the Sabres in five of the six games.
Buffalo scored 235 goals this season and allowed only 207. The Sabres won 45 games for 100 points, which was enough to win the Northeast Division. Buffalo was 25-10-6 at home this season. The Sabres had a lot of balance on offense, with Derek Roy leading the team with 26 goals and 43 assists while Tim Connolly had 17 goals and 48 assists, and Jason Pominville had 24 goals and 38 assists. Thomas Vanek leads Buffalo in goals with 28. Ryan Miller won 41 games in net for the Sabres, including five shutouts. Miller has a goals against average of 2.22 with a save percentage of .930.
Boston scored 206 goals this season while allowing 200. The 200 goals is the second fewest allowed in the NHL this season, but the 206 scored is the fewest of any playoff team. The Bruins won 39 games this season for 91 points. Boston was just 18-17-6 at home but had a 21-13-7 record on the road. Boston hasn’t had much scoring as David Krejci and Patrice Bergeron lead the team with 52 points each. Marco Sturm leads the team in goals with 22 while Zdeno Chara leads in assists with 37. Tuukka Rask won 22 games in net for the Bruins, including five shutouts. He has a goals against average of 1.97 and has a save percentage of .930.
This series will be a battle of goaltenders and as good as Miller is, the Bruins have two viable net minders that can carry the team. With Boston’s success on the road, this might be the series to go with the underdogs. Buffalo struggles offensively, so it will be up to Miller to carry the team all series, and we don’t feel he can do it.
Our Stanley Cup Series Free Pick for this matchup is: BOSTON +150
(Note: This free pick is for the entire seven game series and is not to be confused with our daily NHL picks, which are for individual games.)
Stanley Cup Playoffs Betting Trends
BOSTON is 39-43 ATS (-14.9 Units) in all games this season.
BOSTON is 51-48 ATS (-13.5 Units) second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
BUFFALO is 206-144 ATS (+12.5 Units) vs. division opponents since 1996.
BUFFALO is 11-3 ATS (+7.3 Units) after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
BUFFALO is 10-10-0 straight up against BOSTON over the last 3 seasons
13 of 19 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+6.3 Units)
Stanley Cup Playoffs Injury Report
BOSTON
[C] 03/10/2010 – Marc Savard likely out for season ( Concussion )
[D] 04/06/2010 – Andrew Ference out for season ( Groin )
[D] 04/04/2010 – Mark Stuart expected to miss 2 weeks ( Finger )
[D] 04/05/2010 – Dennis Seidenberg out for season ( Wrist )
BUFFALO
[C] 03/27/2010 – Tim Connolly out indefinitely ( Lower Body )
[RW] 04/06/2010 – Patrick Kaleta expected to miss 1 week ( Thumb )
[C] 04/08/2010 – Jochen Hecht expected to miss last 2 games of the season ( Upper Body )
[RW] 04/11/2010 – Drew Stafford out indefinitely ( Concussion )
Stanley Cup Playoffs Series Odds
Buffalo Sabres -180
Boston Bruins +150
Sabres vs. Bruins Series Schedule:
Thursday, April 15 at Buffalo, 7:00 p.m. CBC
Saturday, April 17 at Buffalo, 1:00 p.m. NBC, CBC
Monday, April 19 at Boston, 7:00 p.m. VERSUS, CBC
Wednesday, April 21 at Boston, 7:00 p.m. VERSUS, CBC
*Friday, April 23 at Buffalo, 7:00 p.m. CBC
*Monday, April 26 at Boston, 7:00 p.m. CBC
*Wednesday, April 28 at Buffalo, 7:00 p.m. CBC
*If Necessary
Bet the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs
Posted: 4/15/10 8:00AM ET