Bruins Ready to Reverse Strange Trend vs Rangers

Friday afternoon’s Thanksgiving Showdown between the New York Rangers and Boston Bruins might appear to be a one-sided affair, but this one’s worth a second look. The Rangers have dominated the head-to-head series between the teams in recent years, and come in having won three straight games and four of their past five.

Sportsbook Odds Analysis

Boston opened as a mammoth -245 favorite, and can be found as high as -255 at some books; the Bruins are 6-2 SU in eight games in which they have been a fave of -200 or higher this season.

New York News & Notes

For years, the Rangers could be counted on to make life miserable for opposing offenses thanks to Henrik Lundqvist – but that isn’t the case in 2019-20, with New York’s defense and goaltending mired in a season-long funk. New York comes into the game with the third-worst goals-against average in the league (3.43) while the penalty kill ranks 25th overall (74.4 percent).

But the Rangers do have the offense working at the moment, and that gives them at least a puncher’s chance of cashing in on long odds at TD Garden. The Rangers have potted 12 goals over their previous three games while sporting the No. 10 power play in the league at 20.7 percent. Forward Artemi Panarin leads the way with 12 goals and 20 assists in 23 games.

Boston News & Notes

The Rangers are one of the few teams to have solved the Bruins, having won nine of the previous 12 meetings. But it’s hard to argue against Boston as the best team in the NHL, having won five consecutive games while earning points in nine straight (6-0-3). It’s no wonder the Bruins are presently the Stanley Cup favorites at +800, passing preseason favorite Tampa Bay.

And as if opponents didn’t already have enough to worry about, it appears that the Bruins have worked out the defensive and goaltending issues that plagued them earlier in the month. After allowing four or more goals four times in a five-game stretch at the beginning of November, the Bruins have surrendered just nine goals over the course of their current five-game winning streak.

Betting Pick: Boston -1.5

There’s little value in taking the Bruins straight up – but thank goodness for the puckline! The Bruins are better in all facets and should keep their incredible run going despite recent struggles vs the Broadway Blueshirts.