Playoff action rules North America tonight. It’s going to a Game 7 in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs as the Detroit Red Wings’ veterans have outplayed their much younger counterparts in the Tampa Bay Lightning. Over at the NBA Playoffs, the Portland Trail Blazers attempt to stave off elimination at the hands of Memphis Grizzlies at the Grindhouse. Read on for everything you need to know on tonight’s top action.
Getting in on all the postseason frenzy? Get your fair share of postseason hockey and basketball. Check out our complete previews for the Game 1 Capitals vs. Rangers and Game 6 of the Clippers vs. Spurs.
[sc:MultiSportArticles ]Detroit Red Wings vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (7:30 PM ET)
Line: Detroit Red Wings (+160) at Tampa Bay Lightning (-190); total 5.0 – view these lines
[sc:NHL240 ]Who can stop that man? Tampa Bay’s Tyler Johnson scored twice, including the winner, in a crucial Game 6 win at Detroit. Johnson now has a league-leading six goals throughout the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. But he is yet to score in consecutive games in the series. Johnson can still rely on the rest of his linemates. Ondrej Palat has already tallied a goal in the series, while Nikita Kucherov has a team-leading four assists.
The young Bolts have their hands full against Detroit’s veterans. Pavel Datsyuk is a game-changer. He has three goals in the series thus far, and assisted in one of Tomas Tatar’s two goals in Game 6’s 5-2 loss. While he may not be scoring goals for the Red Wings, Henrik Zetterberg has three assist sin the series thus far. And there’s also the excellent goaltending of Petr Mrazek, who’s posted two shutouts in the series.
Mrazek has won three of his last four starts on the road. For more on this game, head over to our complete preview.
Writer’s Prediction
The Red Wings (+160) grind out a 3-2 win.
Portland Trail Blazers vs. Memphis Grizzlies (9:30 PM ET)
Line: Portland Trail Blazers (+5.5) at Memphis Grizzlies (-5.5); total 190.5 – view these lines
Damian Lillard and the Blazers weren’t going to lose this series in front of their home fans. That much was certain as Lillard scored a game-high 32 points to lead Portland to a come-from-behind Game 4 win. But things only get much more difficult for the Blazers. They return to the Grindhouse where they’ve lost six straight games (1-5 ATS).
Even with Mike Conley possibly sitting out due to a facial fracture, the Grizzlies may be well-taken care of with the duo of Beno Udrih and Nick Calathes. Udrih scored 30 points on 23-of-31 shooting in 43 minutes in the series. Calathes, in his first career playoff start and first of the season, scored 12 on four three-pointers in the Game 4 loss. The Grizzlies also have the frontcourt duo of Marc Gasol (19 points per game) and Zach Randolph (13) which has put up big points in the series thus far.
Excited for this matchup? Click here for everything you need to know heading into this big Game 5.
Writer’s Prediction
The Grizzlies close off the series, while covering -5.5.
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