Stanley Cup Playoffs Daily Picks Rangers

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vs. , 7 p.m. ET, CNBNC, Game 5Canadiens lead series 3-1Montreal mi sed out on an opportunity to move on to the second round Wednesday night in Ottawa, losing a 1-0 game thanks to a late goal from to extend the series at least one more game. Now the Canadiens have a chance to take care of busine s on home ice.For the Senators, this situation is nothing new for this roster. They know all about overcoming ridiculously long odds when the entire hockey world is counting them out and needing to play a stretch of must-win games. It's pretty much how they got into the playoffs with almost no margin for Alex Petrovic Jersey error over the final two months of the regular season.Do they have another small run in them to put together what needs to be four consecutive wins over the same team? If they do, they're going to need to keep playing like he has over the past two games. He probably won't bring them all the way back, but he might keep the series going another game. Pick: Senators 2, Canadiens 1 vs. , 7 p.m. ET, NBCSN, Game 5Rangers lead series 3-1Can the Penguins return Chris Wagner Men Jersey the favor on New York and overcome a 3-1 series deficit, just as the Rangers did to Pittsburgh last season in the second round? Stranger things have happened, but it just doesn't seem likely.Not given the roster the Penguins have to work with.If nothing else this series has shown just how fine the line is between succe s and failure in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Every game has been incredibly close, decided by just a single goal, with both teams having good reason to believe they could have -- or should have -- won every game in the series. But the Penguins just do not seem to have the firepower right now, whether it be in their forward group or on defense, to score enough to win three straight games against the Presidents' Trophy-winning Rangers. And that has to be frustrating because the Rangers haven't exactly been impre sive in David Backes Women Jersey this series, either.But they've been good enough.Pick: Rangers 3, Penguins 2 vs. , 9:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, Game 5Series tied 2-2Such a strange series between these two teams. Two legitimate Stanley Cup contenders tied through four games, but every game on its own has ended as a blowout (at least by current standards where almost every game is decided by one goal). Not one game in this series has been decided by one goal, while three of them have been decided by three or more goals. The most recent blowout came in Game 4 when the Blues chased from the net, scoring six goals on just 17 shots in le s than two periods of hockey. It was a rare clunker of a start from Dubnyk, who has been consistently sensational since joining the Wild back in January. has been the star of this series having already scored five goals and six points in the first four games. The Wild have to find a way to shut him down. No other player on the Blues has more than two goals in Johnny Bucyk Men Jersey the series, while only has scored more than one.Pick: Blues 4, Wild 2Three stars1. Vladimir Tarasenko, St. Louis Blues: Might as well just start here. Tarasenko has been one of the must-see players in this year's postseason, not only putting up huge numbers but scoring some highlight reel goals as well. He is the go-to offensive force that the Blues had been mi sing in some of their recent disappointing playoff appearances. 2. Craig Anderson, Ottawa Senators: Anderson has stopped 75 of the 77 shots he has faced since taking over for in net. Even though he hasn't had a ton of playoff opportunities throughout his career, he has consistently played well when he has been there and enters Friday with a career .930 save percentage in the playoffs.3. , New York Rangers: His speed is a matchup problem for pretty much every defensemen in the NHL. It's an even bigger problem for Pittsburgh's defense in its current state. Hagelin only Patrice Bergeron Kids Jersey has two points through the first four games, but he has been a constant threat every time he has been on the ice.