The Vegas Golden Knights at the Staples Center in Game 4 of the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The game gets going at 10:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, April 17 and it can be viewed live on NBC Sports Network.
Vegas Golden Knights vs. Los Angeles Kings Odds
Los Angeles (+105) is playing the role of underdog to Los Angeles (-125), and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at 5 goals. The odds for betting that total stand at -125 for the under and +105 for the over.
Vegas is 54-31 straight up (SU) and has earned moneyline bettors 18.9 units this year. Through 85 regular season matches, 42 of its games have gone over the total, while 40 have gone under and just three have pushed. The Knights are 23-19 SU as an away team in 2017-18.
The Golden Knights’ offensive skaters attempted 32.9 shots per game in the regular season, leading to 3.3 goals per contest (ranked fourth overall in the NHL). In the postseason, the team’s up to an average of 36.7 shots on goal (and down to 2.0 goals per game).
Following a regular season where they scored on 21.2 percent of all power-play opportunities (the 10th-best), the Golden Knights have connected on 9.1 percent of their power plays in the early stages of these playoffs.
Averaging 28.0 saves per game with a .930 save percentage, Marc-Andre Fleury (32-17-4) has been the top option in goal for Vegas this year. If head coach Gerard Gallant decides to rest him, however, the team may go with Malcolm Subban (15-7-2), who has a .910 save percentage and 2.68 goals against average this year.
William Karlsson and Jonathan Marchessault will both lead the way for the visiting Golden Knights. Karlsson (79 points) is up to 44 goals and 35 assists, and has recorded two or more points 19 times. Marchessault has 27 goals and 50 assists to his credit (and has registered a point in 47 games).
Over on the other bench, Los Angeles is 45-40 straight up (SU) and has lost 1.6 units for moneyline bettors thus far. Through 85 regular season matches, 44 of its games have gone under the total, while 37 have gone over and just four have pushed. It’s 23-19 SU as the home team this year.
The Kings have converted on just 19.9 percent of their power play opportunities this year, a mark that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked first overall, and it’s successfully killed off 85.2 percent of all penalties.
Kings players have been sent to the penalty box 3.8 times per game in total this season, and 3.0 per game over their last ten games. The team’s been forced to defend opponent power plays just 6.3 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Jonathan Quick (27.2 saves per game) has been the top choice in goal for the Kings. Quick has 33 wins, 34 losses, and four overtime losses to his credit and has registered a 2.36 goals against average and a .923 save percentage this year.
The home team offense will be led by Anze Kopitar (36 goals, 58 assists).
Vegas Golden Knights vs. Los Angeles Kings Betting Predictions
Free Pick: SU Winner – Golden Knights, O/U – Under
Notes
Betting Notes
Four of Los Angeles’ last ten contests have been decided by two or more goals, and the team is 3-1 overall in those games.
The Kings this season have tallied the third-most hits per game (27.2), but that number has risen to 31.0 over their past five home outings.
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