| 2009 NHL Playoffs: Pittsburgh Penguins vs Carolina Hurricanes Game 4 |
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| Written by Scott Burgess | |||||||
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Tuesday, 26 May 2009
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 The Pittsburgh Penguins can sweep the Carolina Hurricanes tonight, May 26, with a road win in Carolina. If they win they’ll make to Stanley Cup Final for the second straight year, setting up a possible rematch with Detroit. NHL oddsmakers at SBGglobal.com have the Penguins as -130 moneyline favs over the Hurricanes (+110) with the over/under listed at 5.5 goals. Be sure to get your 2009 NHL Playoffs Pittsburgh Penguins vs Carolina Hurricanes Prediction in now at SBGglobal.comThe Penguins pounded the Canes in Game 3 6-2 thanks to goals from Evgeni Malkin (2), Sidney Crosby, Ruslan Fedotenko, Craig Adams and Bill Guerin. Their power play went 2 for 4 and their penalty kill hasn’t given up a goal in two games or 6 kills. Goalie Marc-Andre Fleury has been great in the playoffs; he’s currently 11-5 in the playoffs with a 2.71 GAA after giving up 45 goals. Malkin has five goals in his last two games and he currently leads his teammates with 28pts (12 goals 16 assist), while Sidney Crosby sits close behind with 26pts (14 goals 12 assist). Malkin has 16 points in six games, including nine points and at least a goal in every game of this series. He followed up his first career NHL playoff hat trick by threatening to do it again with his sixth straight multipoint game. Crosby has 10 points in his last five. The Pens outshot the Canes 40-34 last game and have outshot the Hurricanes 113-87 throughout this series. The Hurricanes have their backs against the wall. They have to get their power play going after unsuccessfully missing on three tries in Game 3 and three tries in Game 2. They did get goals from Matt Cullen and Sergei Samsonov. Goalie Cam Ward has hot during the Bruins and New Jersey series, but he’s lost five of his last six starts and has given up 26 goals. His current record in these playoffs is 8-9 with a 2.65 GAA while giving up 46 goals. The Canes top producers are Eric Staal with 14pts (9 goals 5 assists), while Jussi Jokinen, Chad Larose and Ray Whitney are knotted at 11pts each. Only twice has a team rallied from a 3-0 series deficit to win a series, and it hasn't happened since the New York Islanders did it against Pittsburgh in 1975. "Our challenge: We've got to find a way to beat them once," Hurricanes coach Paul Maurice said. "And then we'll try to revisit that." The Hurricanes have led for a total of 13 minutes 45 seconds through three games Recent Trends to Consider:
2009 NHL Playoffs Pittsburgh Penguins vs Carolina Hurricanes When: Mon, May 25, 2009 7:30 PM ET Line: SBGglobal.com Pick: Pens -130 Point-Spreads.com 2009 NHL Playoffs Pittsburgh Penguins vs Carolina Hurricanes The Bottom Line: The Pens are red hot with Malkin producing now and the Hurricanes goalie woes don’t help either. Go Pens! Be sure to get your 2009 NHL Playoffs Pittsburgh Penguins vs Carolina Hurricanes Prediction in now at SBGglobal.com and receive a 60% sign-up bonus on your initial deposit.                        |
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| Last Updated ( Tuesday, 26 May 2009 ) | |||||||