Game 3 of this Eastern Conference Final gets underway on Sunday afternoon as the Florida Panthers host the New York Rangers. Despite having just the lone game, there are still an abundance of NHL odds for bettors to choose from.
I’ve compiled my three best NHL player props for today’s action. As always, make sure you keep an eye on the odds and available pricing due to the ever-changing nature of the player prop market.
Here are my free NHL picks in the player prop market for Sunday, May 26.
Rangers vs Panthers prop picks and best bets for May 26
- Bobrovsky Under 2.5 goals against (-125 at BET99)
- Verhaeghe anytime goalscorer (+170 at BET99 — 0.5 units)
- Tkachuk anytime goalscorer (+170 at BET99 — 0.5 units)
Picks made on 5-26 at 9:30 a.m. ET.
Read full analysis of each pick.
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Today’s Rangers vs Panthers prop picks and best bets
Prop bet #1:
Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky has been dominant throughout this postseason, posting a 9-4 record with a .912 SV% and 2.12 GAA. He’s been particularly dialed on over the past two rounds, allowing two or fewer goals in each of his past seven starts.
Bobrovsky is 5-2 over that stretch with a commanding .935 SV% and 1.39 GAA. At a mere price of -125, we will back this trend to continue as he returns to home ice for the first time in this series on Sunday.
This success is likely to continue against New York, a team he boasts a .941 SV% against over the past four meetings. Bobrovsky has allowed two or fewer goals in three of those four outings.
Sergei Bobrovsky prop: Under 2.5 goals against (-125 at BET99)
Prop bet #2:
Florida forward Carter Verhaeghe was the team’s lone skater to find the back of the net in Game 2, and we should continue to ride the hot hand as he also scored in Game 1 against the New York Rangers. Verhaeghe leads the Panthers in goals scored and co-leads in even-strength goals this postseason.
I mention that second stat because New York has struggled to suppress high-danger scoring chances at 5-on-5, ranking in the bottom half among the 16 playoff teams this postseason in expected goals against per 60 minutes (xGA/60). Backing up this blue line is goaltender Igor Shesterkin, who is undoubtedly one of the world’s best goaltenders.
With that said, you need your big names to beat a guy like Shesterkin, and Verhaeghe has been that guy thus far. In fact, Verhaeghe has now found the back of the net in five of his past seven games against the Rangers.
Carter Verhaeghe prop: Anytime goalscorer (+170 at BET99 — 0.5 units)
Prop bet #3:
I’m risking a half-unit on Verhaeghe to score along with another half-unit on his teammate Matthew Tkachuk. My thinking here is simple: I am fairly confident that at least one of these two guys will find the back of the net, which would guarantee a profit.
And, if both score, all the better. At least one of Verhaeghe or Tkachuk has scored in nine of the team’s 13 postseason games thus far, and they have both scored in three of those nine outings. Tkachuk is simply a big-game player, scoring 11 goals over his past 21 playoff games.
I mentioned in the previous section that Verhaeghe co-leads the team in even-strength goals this postseason. His co-leader is Tkachuk.
Matthew Tkachuk prop: Anytime goalscorer (+170 at BET99 — 0.5 units)
Not intended for use in MA.
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