NHL Playoff Odds Preview: Saturday Games

After a close win in their series opener on Thursday night the Ottawa Senators look to go up 2-0 on the New York Rangers when they clash in Game 2 on Saturday.

Ottawa was listed at -105 on home ice in Game 1 and delivered a 2-1 victory. Erik Karlsson netted the game-winner late in the third period after finding the back of the net from a near-impossible angle off Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist. Ryan Dzingel also scored for Ottawa, who boast an impressive 5-1 record in their last six games.

Craig Anderson made 34 saves for Ottawa, while his counterpart Lundqvist stopped 41 shots. The lone Rangers goal was scored on the power play by defenseman Ryan McDonagh.

With the loss the Rangers dropped to 2-6 in their last eight road games. Ottawa owns a 5-2 mark in their last seven at home, and they're also a solid 4-1 in their last five versus the Rangers.

For totals bettors the UNDER looks very enticing in this one. The UNDER is 7-1 in the last eight games between Ottawa and New York, while the Rangers are 8-1-1 UNDER in their last 10 games overall.

After taking Game 1 the Senators are a -150 series favorite, while the Rangers are +130 underdogs. For Saturday afternoon the Senators are listed at -110 at the Bovada Sportsbook.

In the other Saturday matchup the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals square off in Game 2 of their series.

The Penguins edged the Capitals 3-2 in Game 1 behind some stellar goaltending from Marc-Andre Fleury. He faced 35 shots and made some spectacular saves in the third period to secure the win. Sidney Crosby netted a pair of goals for Pittsburgh in less than a minute in the second period, while Nick Bonino potted the game-winner in the third.

Alexander Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov supplied the goals for Washington, who lost as a -134 favorite. The loss snapped a three-game winning streak for the Capitals and dropped them to 4-3 in their last seven home playoff games.

Pittsburgh improved to 5-1 in their last six games, and they're 4-2 in their last six against the Capitals. The road victory continued the Penguins' strong road performance in the postseason, as they are now 4-1 in their last five.

The final score in Game 1 went UNDER the posted total of 5.5, which went against the recent trends. Before Game 1 the last five games between Pittsburgh and Washington went 4-0-1 on the OVER.

With Game 1 in hand the Penguins are now a -190 series favorite, while Washington is a +165 underdog. Saturday's NHL line has Washington as the -150 favorite at the Bovada Sportsbook.