The one thing we've learned about the Nashville Predators in this postseason is to never count them out. They looked like they were basically dead in the water against Anaheim down 3-2 and rallied back to win that series, and they looked equally dead against the San Jose Sharks after losing the first two games at the SAP Center and falling behind 1-0 at home in Game 3.
But the Preds rallied back for four straight goals to cut the series deficit in half, and now they've got a shot to level this series on Thursday night.
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ODDS ANALYSIS
Game 3 was lined at basically a pick 'em, and it won't be far off from that in Game 4 either. However, whereas Nashville was the very slight favorite at -110 in Game 3, we suspect that line will turn around the other way in Game 4 now that this series has gotten a little bit tighter.
Once again, the total should debut at a flat 5.
GOALIE REPORT
Martin Jones was going to put together a dud of a game at some point in these playoffs, and he finally did just that when he let four by him on just 25 shots in Game 3. It's going to happen, but Jones isn't going to want to make a habit of it. Remember that he was 6-0-1 in his first seven playoff games with the Sharks and was a real difference-maker from previous years, so he'll need to get back on track if they're going to push to the verge of winning this series.
Pekka Rinne is only 5-5-0, but he continues to be the most important piece to the puzzle for the Predators. He allowed an early goal to Patrick Marleau in Game 3, but aside from that, he was out of this world in a 26-for-27 effort. Credit should really go out to his defensemen which kept him relatively clean though, as Nashville blocked gobs of shots which never made it to the target.
LIVE BETTING
We already briefly touched on it, but this Nashville defense is clearly going to be the key going forward. Roman Josi and Shea Weber were each -2 in the first two games of this series, but in Game 3, they were on point. Josi picked up an assist on a goal in the third, while Weber finished off a great game with a goal and an assist. Both men were really nuisances in front of their own net keeping the big boys out of the way for San Jose as well.
Josi and Weber don't need to be out of this world from an offensive standpoint to win games, but their +/- is going to be key for sure.
QUICK PICK
It's been nice seeing Nashville make this a bit of a series, but we think it's all over with for all intents and purposes come Thursday night. The Sharks are the real deal, and they'll fight back to come up with an away win to afford them the opportunity to finish off this series at home over the weekend.
Look for Joe Pavelski and Joe Thornton, men who were silenced in Game 3, to come up big to help win Game 4.
NHL Odds: Sharks 3, Predators 2
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