The Stanley Cup will be in the house at Amalie Arena on Sunday night, but the host Tampa Bay Lightning will do everything they can to keep the Colorado Avalanche from holding on to their ice. After a late goal by Ondrej Palat in the third period, the Lightning held on to win 3-2 in Game 5.
As always, you can watch the action live on ABC, ESPN+ and the ESPN app at 8 pm ET, with ESPN+ offering live stats and additional camera angles.
All odds below courtesy of Caesars Sportsbook.
Stanley Cup Final Game 6: Colorado Avalanche at Tampa Bay Lightning
Disk line: colorado-1.5
money line: Colorado (-115), Tampa Bay (-105)
Total: 6
Greg Wyshynski, NHL Senior Writer: Avalanche vs. Lightning UNDER 6 goals (-130)
The last two games of the series reached the low with a total of five goals. As long as the number stays at six goals, I think taking the low here is the obvious play. The Lightnings are coming to their game, and their game is defense. If the Avalanche are going to win the Stanley Cup tonight, it will be through a grueling, low-scoring road game. Under is 10-4-2 in Stanley Cup Games 6 and 7 since 2005. Action volume still up: BetMGM reports 58% walks and 61% handle up for Game 5 , which could mean a lot of money is being bet on the low, as those odds continue to rise.
Wyshynski: Mikko Rantanen scores an assist (-125)
Game 5 snapped a four-game assist streak for Rantanen in the Stanley Cup Final. He is fourth in the playoffs with 20 assistants. Fansure points out that Rantanen has an assist in 11 of his 12 games against top 10 scoring defenses. I like this play because Colorado coach Jared Bednar hasn’t hesitated to pair Rantanen with Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog, a line that has terrified the NHL for the better part of four seasons. Whether he’s with them or Nazem Kadri, there’s a strong chance to score in 5v5. Combine that with his power play time, and there’s a lot of potential at a slightly depressed price after Game 5.
Sachin Dave Chandan, ESPN betting editor: Nathan MacKinnon or Steven Stamkos to score first +330
As seen below, these two guys lead their respective groups of forwards in shots on goal per game, as well as times, being the top scorer this postseason. In fact, MacKinnon has been the leading shooter in every series, even though he went scoreless in Game 5.
List of first goalscorers
Number of times each player has been the first scorer in the playoffs.
LightningFirst GoalAvalancheFirst GoalSteven Stamkos3Nathan MacKinnon3Corey Perry2Artturi Lehkonen2Pat Maroon2Gabriel Landeskog2Victor Hedman1Andre Burakovsky1Ondrej Palat1Cale Makar1Nikita Kucherov1Valeri Nichushkin1Nick Paul1Anthony Cirelli1Jan Rutta1
Kicks to goal
LightningAverageAvalancheAverageSteven Stamkos2.6Nathan MacKinnon5.6Nikita Kucherov3Valeri Nichushkin4.2Victor Hedman4Mikko Rantanen2.4Ondrej Palat2.2Cale Makar3.8Alex Killorn1.4Gabriel Landeskog2.2
Source: www.espn.com