- What: NHL Western Conference Playoffs Second Round Series
- When: May 6-May 18th, 2025*(If Necessary)
- Who: Edmonton Oilers vs. Vegas Golden Knights
- Where: T-Mobile Arena (Las Vegas, NV)
For the second time in three years, the Vegas Golden Knights and Edmonton Oilers are meeting in the second round of the NHL Playoffs.
Two years ago, the Golden Knights triumphed over the Oilers in six games on their way to capturing the Stanley Cup.
Meanwhile, the Oilers have successfully progressed through multiple playoff rounds in two of the past three seasons and are eager to return to the Stanley Cup final after a narrow defeat in seven games last year.
Both teams are evenly matched, with odds of -110 to reach the Western Conference Finals.
Series Winner: Golden Knights (-110)
While Calvin Pickard adequately filled in for Stuart Skinner in the first round, Adin Hill seemed to improve as the series against the Minnesota Wild progressed, ending with a solid .918 SV% over his last three games.
Beyond a pair of exceptional talents—perhaps a third if we include Evan Bouchard’s contributions against L.A.—the Golden Knights seem to have the upper hand over Edmonton in nearly every aspect.
If Jack Eichel and his teammates can manage to limit the impact of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl—which is undoubtedly a tall order—they should be able to rely on their stronger team defense, goaltending, and scoring depth to secure a series win.
Series total games: Over 6.5 (+200)
This season, the two teams faced off four times during the regular season, each securing two wins in regulation.
Fans can anticipate a high-scoring series, especially with the duo of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl totaling 21 points in their first-round matchup against Los Angeles.
Five out of six games went over the total in that thrilling series. Additionally, the over hit four times in Vegas’s six-game series against Minnesota.
Both teams will be without significant players due to injury: Pavel Dorofeyev is sidelined with an undisclosed issue for Vegas, while Edmonton will miss defenseman Mattias Ekholm for the entirety of the series.
This has all the makings of a seven-game series. These are pretty evenly matched teams, the Golden Knights are 8-9 against the Oilers in the past 3 years.
I’ll take a risk and wager this one goes the distance for +200 odds.
Game/Series double: Golden Knights win Game 1/Golden Knights win Series (+185)
The Golden Knights are favored to win game 1 at -135 odds. Pairing this win with a series win gets us to +185 odds. The implied probability of +185 is a little more than 35%.
If the Golden Knights are to win this series, they’ll need a strong start, to take advantage of home ice, and to win game 1.
This might be my top bet of the series, as you’re essentially securing the Golden Knights to win the series at a much better value.
WATCH: Best Picks for Wild vs. Golden Knights Playoff Series
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Tony Reyes is a sports betting analyst and reporter for Dice City Sports. You can follow him on X @TonyParlay.
