Sharks vs. Golden Knights Prediction
Both the San Jose Sharks and Las Vegas Knights swept their opponent in the first round of the Western Conference Playoffs. Which team – San Jose or host Las Vegas – will continue its winning streak in Game 1 of the conference semifinals?
Game Snapshot
81 San Jose Sharks at 82 Las Vegas Golden Knights
Thursday, April 26, 2018
T-Mobile Arena at 10PM ET
TV: NBCSN
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Public Betting Information
According to oddsmakers at YouWager, the Golden Knights are a -145 favorite to win on the moneyline. The Sharks are a +125 underdog, while the over-under sits at 5 goals. As of Thursday morning, 61 percent of public bets are coming in on host Las Vegas. Check out our NHL Public Betting Page for the latest information.
Golden Knights win with defense, balance
Las Vegas goalie Marc-Andre Fleury has played some of the best hockey of his career this season as the top expansion draft pick has notched career-bests in goals-against average (2.24) and save percentage (.927). He has been bolstered by a strong defense in front of him, but none of the credit should be taken away from the veteran. He turned his game up another notch in the sweep over Los Angeles, earning bookend shutouts with a 0.65 GAA and .977 save percentage. Offensively, the Golden Knights only scored eight total goals over the four games and no one on the team had nire than one goal. Right winger Reilly Smith dished out three assists to lead the team in points.
San Jose on top of game
The Sharks weren’t even expected by plenty of people to advance past the first round in their series with Anaheim, but instead they won four straight games and none of the contests seemed particularly close even though they were two games decided by one goal. San Jose outscored the Ducks 16-4 over the four games as it overwhelmed the opposition on both ends of the ice. Left winger Evander Kane, center Tomas Hertl and right winger Marcus Sorensen all had three goals and an assist over the four games. Center Joe Pavelski tallied a goal and four assists, while centerl Logan Couture contributed two goals and three assists. Goaltender Martin Jones was outstanding in allowing one goal per game with a shutout and a .970 save percentage.
NHL Betting Trends
San Jose
The over is 4-0-3 in the last seven Sharks conference semifinals games.
Las Vegas
The under is 4-0-1 in the last five Golden Knights games versus a team with a winning record.
Prediction:
Both of these teams enter the series on a roll with no losses between them in the first round. But the Sharks looked every bit as impressive against arguably a better opponent. While Las Vegas won three of the four head-to-head meetings this season, it won the two home games 5-4 in overtime and 3-2. San Jose is playing better hockey now than it was at that point of the season, so I have no issues with firing off a bet on the underdog and hoping for the best. This could go into overtime right off the bat and at that point it’s anybody’s game.
NHL DAILY PREDICTION: SAN JOSE SHARKS +125