The Ottawa Senators will be looking to clinch a berth in the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2013 on Friday when they host the Boston Bruins in Game 5 of their first-round series as narrow -110 underdogs at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Ottawa extended its recent dominance over Boston with a 1-0 win as +147 road underdogs in Game 4 to take a 3-1 series lead into Friday night’s Bruins versus Senators betting matchup at the Canadian Tire Centre.
That victory marked the Senators’ 13th win in their past 16 meetings with Boston, and sixth in seven clashes with the Bruins since March 6. Ottawa has outscored the Bruins by a 19-13 margin over those seven recent contests, and have now held the Bruins off the scoreboard for over four periods.
The Bruins hit the road as razor thin -120 betting chalk despite being mired in a poorly timed slide that has left them winless in five of six and threatens to bounce them from the playoffs in the opening round for the first time since 2012.
Boston has tallied just 10 total goals during its current swoon, which started with a 2-1 home loss to Ottawa as -200 favourites on April 6. The Bruins have also recorded just two wins in their past 10 visits to Ottawa, scoring more than three goals in a game just once during that stretch.
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Also on Friday night, the Toronto Maple Leafs will try to rebound from a 5-4 Game 4 loss on Wednesday as they visit the Washington Capitals for Game 5 as heavy +170 underdogs.
The Maple Leafs forced overtime in the first three games of this set, stunning the heavily favoured Capitals with a pair of 4-3 wins in Games 2 and 3 to seize the series lead. However, Toronto was doomed by a slow start in Game 4, allowing four goals in the first period of a 5-4 loss as a +131 underdog.
Toronto has surrendered six total first-period goals over the past two games, but also tallied its first two third-period markers of the series in Game 4, providing Maple Leafs fans with renewed optimism by outshooting Washington 19-3 in the final frame.
The Maple Leafs’ 4-3 Game 2 win as +222 road underdogs ended an eight-game losing streak for the team in Washington.
However, the club has not produced consecutive road wins over the Capitals since February 2003, going 7-18-1 in 26 road dates since, according to the OddsShark NHL Database, while the Capitals have avoided consecutive losses on home ice since April of last year.
Washington enters Game 5 as a -250 favourite to win the series at the sportsbooks.
