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2023 NHL Playoffs Stanley Cup Final Game 1 Same-Game Parlay

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After a layoff that felt like an eternity — especially if you’re the Florida Panthers — the NHL drops the puck on Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final Saturday night.

The aforementioned Panthers will square off with the Western Conference champion Vegas Golden Knights in what should be a highly-competitive series.

I broke down how I think this series will play out in my series preview. But how should we handle Game 1? Here’s my same-game parlay for Saturday’s showdown.

Best NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs Game 1 Same Game Parlay

All odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook

Florida Panthers (+110) at Vegas Golden Knights (-135) | Total 5.5

    • Leg 1: Vegas -135
    • Leg 2: Over 5.5 goals
    • Leg 3: Under 1.5 first period goals
    • Odds: +675

This is going to be a fascinating series because, on paper, Vegas and Florida are relatively even teams. Vegas has a bit more depth on the blue line, and Florida has some top-end scorers who can feast on the counter rush. This series will probably come down to the goaltenders.

Both Sergei Bobrovsky and Adin Hill have been great during the postseason. But both of these goalies have such a wide range of outcomes. Bobrovsky is the current favorite to win the Conn Smythe Trophy, but would it stun anyone if he fell on his face in this series? The same goes for Hill, who just played his first full postseason series in the Western Conference Finals. Bobrovsky was red-hot in the Eastern Conference Final, but will the long layoff get him out of his rhythm?

That’s what will make each game in this series incredibly tough to handicap. And Game 1 feels like the biggest wild card of them all.

It also doesn’t help that both teams have outperformed their predictive analytics during this postseason. And that’s not a complete shock, as sometimes you need some puck luck to advance in the playoffs. But take a look at these stats at 5-on-5 play:

  • Goals For: Vegas 48-23 (67.61%), Florida 31-25 (55.36%)
  • Expected Goals For: Vegas 35.45-35.45 (50.03%), Florida 36.47-41.83 (46.58%)

This suggests that both teams could be due for some regression. And once again, that suspected regression stems from the outstanding goaltending play both teams have gotten recently.

Game 1 of a series is always the toughest one to predict in my mind. But here’s how I envision the game playing out. I think both teams will feel each other out during the first period and shake off some rust and Cup Final nerves. But then, I suspect the game opens up, and both goaltenders show some of the aforementioned rust and regression we talked about above. Ultimately, I think Bob is just a little worse than Hill in Game 1, and the Golden Knights win in a higher-scoring game than expected.

This will be a tricky one to win, but I am taking the first period under, the full game over, and the Golden Knights to win.

Check out our other best bets for Saturday:


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