Sports fans are in for a treat tonight as the NHL and the NBA has lined up two mouth-watering playoff games that will definitely whet your sporting appetite. Kicking things off later this evening is the much-anticipated Game 5 showdown between the Toronto Raptors and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Then, over at the NHL, it’s Game 6 of the Western Conference Final between the San Jose Sharks and the St. Louis Blues. Read on below for a quick breakdown of these two important games and while you’re at it, you can check out our preview of the 2016 Monaco Grand Prix.
Don’t count out the Raptors just yet. Toronto put forth a tremendous performance in Game 4 to even their series with Cleveland at two games apiece. Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan combined for 67 points to lead the Raptors to a shock 105-99 victory. They are the first pair of teammates to score at least 30 points and shoot at least 60 percent from the field in a conference finals game since Dan Majerle and Charles Barkley did it for the Phoenix Suns in their 1993 series against the Seattle SuperSonics.
It’s back to the drawing board for the beleaguered Cavaliers heading into Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals. For the Cavs to regain momentum in this series, they will need to do a much better job with their execution down the stretch. They shot just 1-of-10 from the field and 1-of-8 from 3-point range in the final 4:11 of Game 4. LeBron James inexplicably took only one shot in the last 5:09 of Game 4.
The Cavs are 5-1 SU and 4-2 ATS in their last six home games against the Raptors. They are pegged at +170to win this year’s NBA championship.
Writer’s Prediction
Cleveland wins, 105-96, to grab a critical 3-2 series lead.
The San Jose Sharks moved to within a victory of the Stanley Cup Finals with a resounding 6-3 win over the St. Louis Blues on Monday night. Joe Pavelski and Joel Ward each scored twice for the Sharks who now head home with an all-important 3-2 series lead. Pavelski leads all players in this year’s playoffs with 12 goals. The Sharks captain is also tied with Logan Couture for the postseason points lead, with both forwards posting a franchise-record 21 points.
Action now shifts to San Jose for Game 6 with the Blues now fighting for their playoff lives. For them to force a winner-take-all Game 7, they will need to get a huge performance from star forward Vladimir Tarasenko. He was silent once again in Game 5 with Tarasenko posting a minus-2 with just one shot. The Russian star is scoreless in this series thus far. That’s quite a shock considering Tarasenko nabbed seven goals and 13 points in the opening two rounds of this postseason.
The Blues are 7-3 in their last 10 road games against the Sharks. They are pegged at +500to win the Stanley Cup.
Writer’s Prediction
San Jose wins, 3-2, to advance to the Stanley Cup for the first time in their franchise history.
