The Ottawa Senators make their first appearance in the Eastern Conference Final since 2007 on Saturday, taking on the defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins as +180 road underdogs on the NHL betting lines at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Ottawa clinched a berth in the conference final by once again defying the oddsmakers with a six-game series win over the New York Rangers in the second round as +130 underdogs on the NHL series prices, but now enters Saturday night’s matchup at PPG Paints Arena set at long +250 odds to reach the Stanley Cup final for the second time in the modern era.
After closing out the regular season on a shaky 5-6-4 run that briefly threatened its playoff hopes, little was expected from Ottawa in the post-season. But the Senators have emerged as the Cinderella story of these playoffs after bouncing the Boston Bruins in the first round as +180 underdogs.
Ottawa has sported positive odds in 10 of its 12 playoff contests, going 4-2 in six dates as a road underdog, including a series-clinching 4-2 win in New York as a +173 underdog on Tuesday. However, the Senators were unable to keep pace with the Rangers in Games 3 and 4 at Madison Square Garden, recording a pair of 4-1 losses, and twice needed overtime to seal road wins against Boston in the first round.
The Penguins advanced to the Eastern Conference Final for the third time in five years following a seven-game series with Washington, marked by a head injury to captain Sidney Crosby that forced him to miss Game 4 and limited his production over the final three games of their clash with the Capitals.
Crosby’s concussion adds to a growing list of injury concerns for the Penguins, who have also been without defencemen Kris Letang and Trevor Daley. However, that has failed to stem confidence in Pittsburgh at the sportsbooks, where it’s perched as heavy -300 favourites to end Ottawa’s playoff run, and at +175 on the odds to win the Stanley Cup for the second straight season.
The Penguins will need to tighten things up on home ice after losing two of three to the Capitals at PPG Paints Arena last round. But Pittsburgh has posted wins in 12 of its last 14 meetings with Ottawa on home ice.
Pittsburgh has also dominated the Senators in the postseason, going 12-3 while bouncing Ottawa from the playoffs in their past three series matchups, holding the Senators to two or fewer goals on eight occasions.
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