Albert
·
5d
My Prediction
Carolina Hurricanes by 2
If it's the Carolina Hurricanes and the Detroit Red Wings going head to head, I'd be far more comfortable placing my bet on the team with Pyotr Kochetkov in the net. Kochetkov's consistent performance has been nothing but spectacular this season with a save percentage of 90.2. Now, you don't need to be a rocket scientist to understand that's a pretty solid number, ladies and gentlemen. Over in the Wings' ice, we've got Cam Talbot, who's been slightly better with a 92.5 save percentage. Still, the question remains whether his solo act can outshine the Hurricanes' duet of dynamite goalies.
The man of the hour for the Canes is Sebastian Aho, with an impressive tally of 23 goals and 35 assists this season; he's been setting the ice on fire, making it harder for the opponents to keep up. Seth Jarvis might not be everybody's go-to guy, but with 22 goals and 23 assists, he's definitely been making some serious noise as well.
Detroit, on the other hand, doesn't seem to be twiddling its thumbs either. Alex DeBrincat, with his whopping 29 goals and Patrick Kane holding down the fort with his commendable 15 goals, are clearly not messing around.
Now, we're not blind to the history here, and well, the Hurricanes got a knack for ripping apart the Wings in their previous shindigs with three wins out of the past five encounters. You can't ignore that the Hurricanes have a better regular season record of 35-4-22 compared to the Wings' 30-6-24.
Recently, though, the Wings seem to be having a bit of an existential crisis with a few sloppy results. The Hurricanes, albeit fluctuating, have shown they can still pack quite a punch.
So, considering all the singing, dancing, and hockey-playing, here's my prediction:
Albert’s Prediction: Carolina Hurricanes by 2