The San Jose Sharks seem to be right on the verge of the Western Conference Finals. They still need two more wins over the Nashville Predators, but it really feels to us like the Preds have already been beaten.
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ODDS ANALYSIS
San Jose found itself favored by huge margins of -152 and -163 in the first two games of this series, and after posting two pretty dominant efforts in which it wore down Nashville in the third period, we have to wonder if it's going to be favored here at Bridgestone Arena for Game 3 as well.
It'll be close one way or the other.
GOALIE REPORT
In fairness to Pekka Rinne, San Jose now has three empty net goals through two games of this series. So yes, the Sharks have scored eight goals in the two duels, but Rinne is only responsible for five of the eight.
It's not like Rinne has been great, though. He's stopped 55-of-60 shots he's favored for a .917 save percentage, and that's just not good enough at this level, especially against a team as good as San Jose.
The Sharks haven’t exactly kept Martin Jones totally clean, as he's had to face 70 shots in the two games, but he's really gotten the job done. Jones allowed two goals in each of the first two games, but he gets a pass for conceding a Predators goal with just four seconds left in Game 2, knowing that the affair was already on lockdown with the lead at 3-1.
LIVE BETTING
Live bettors who took the under have been burned in a bad way in each of the last two games. The Sharks have scored all eight of their goals in this series from the 18:36 mark of the second period on, and in each case, it really looked like they wore down Nashville in preparation for the final stanza.
Sunday night was about the superstars for sure. Joe Pavelski, Joe Thornton and Logan Couture each scored goals, and at least two of them were in on all three of San Jose’s lamplighters.
Couture and Pavelski each have 10 points through seven playoff games.
QUICK PICK
We're just not sure what more Nashville can do than it did in Games 1 and 2. The Preds aren't built to fire off 35 shots in every game, and though they did manage 70 in the two games at the SAP Center, doing so again at home in Game 3 isn't all that likely.
At some point, the under is going to cash cleanly in this series, and that's probably the right way to go in this one. This could be a really gritty game with a lot of action in the corners along the boards.
Normally speaking, we'd tell you that favors the Predators, but this year, these Sharks are much different. They're capable of going on the road and winning games which aren't the prettiest, and we think they'll do just that to effectively end this series on Tuesday night.
NHL Odds: Sharks 2, Predators 1
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Real-time spreads, totals, props and moneyline odds are all available by clicking here, so start betting with BookMaker today! The matchup between the San Jose Sharks and the Nashville Predators will start at 9:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday, May 3, 2016 at Bridgestone Arena. Game 3 of this series will be televised live on USA.
