The New York Islanders and Carolina Hurricanes begin the 2023-24 Stanley Cup Playoffs on Saturday at 5 p.m. ET.
The Hurricanes were -230 favorites to win Game 1 and are currently -340 favorites to win the series.
Will this be as easy as expected, or will the Islanders prove to be a trickier opponent than these odds suggest?
Let’s take a look.
Islanders vs. Hurricanes odds and picks
It’s been a two-season saga for the Hurricanes.
It’s not that Carolina was bad during the first few months of the 2023-24 season, but poor goaltending and uncharacteristically sloppy play meant it took a while for the Canes to get back on track.
Carolina just entered the Christmas break at 17-13-4 and looked like they needed a scrap to advance to the postseason.
Most players believed that Carolina would eventually turn things around, but the Canes outperformed them after the holidays.
Carolina posted a 35-10-3 record after Christmas with a +62 point differential in that span.
The goaltending improved dramatically, especially after Freddie Andersen returned to action, and Carolina posted some of the best 5-on-5 numbers in the league.
The Hurricanes play a chaotic, all-action hockey style that relies on suffocating opponents with pressure and physicality.
Few, if any, teams play like the Canes, which makes them a difficult group to prepare for.
For the islanders it is a story of many seasons.
The Isles were shaky at best out of the gate, plagued by terrible defense and injuries, but by mid-December they appeared to have righted the ship.
But things got even weirder from there, leading to a coaching change with Patrick Roy replacing Lane Lambert.
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The transition from Lambert to Roy paid off, with the Isles playing at a 100-point pace and showing significant improvement defensively under their new head coach.
These defensive improvements will be put to the test against the Hurricanes, who had an elite 5-on-5 record this season and had the second-best power play in the NHL.
The Hurricanes deserve to be the heavy favorites in this series after Game 1, but the Islanders aren’t going to get out easily either and have the fortitude in goaltending and defense to be tenacious and provide value at this kind of price. .
Betting money: Islanders +185+ (FanDuel Sportsbook)
