NHL Odds, Preview, Prediction: Rangers vs Panthers Game 6 (Saturday, June 1)

Saturday, June 1

8 p.m. ET

ABC & ESPN+

Rangers Odds	+138
Panthers Odds	-166
Over / Under	5.5 +115o / -135u

Odds via FanDuel. Get up-to-the-minute NHL odds here.

Here's everything you need to know about the Rangers vs. Panthers odds for Game 6 on Saturday, June 1 – our expert NHL prediction and pick.

For the first time this season, the Rangers will face elimination after dropping a 3-2 decision to the Panthers at Madison Square Garden on Thursday. For Florida, Game 6 will be the team's first opportunity to punch its ticket back to the Stanley Cup Final for a second straight year after sweeping the Carolina Hurricanes in the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals. 

So far, the series has been a back-and-forth battle. Florida took Game 1, then the Rangers regained the upper hand with two straight overtime wins before the Panthers reeled off a pair of 3-2 wins.

With New York's back against the wall — and the oddsmakers showering doubt on the NHL's 2023-24 regular-season champions — here's why bettors should take a long look at the Rangers extending this series to a do-or-die Game 7. Let's dive into our Rangers vs Panthers prediction and pick.

New York Rangers

Take a look at the analytics and the Rangers were dominated again in Game 5. They controlled less than 31% of expected goals and were outshot 37-27. 

Chris Kreider’s opening goal Thursday was the Blueshirts' second of the series to be scored while shorthanded — which is one more than they’ve managed on the power play. In this series, 5-on-5 scoring has also become an issue. Alexis Lafreniere’s Game 5 tally came in the last minute of play, after the Panthers had built a cushion with an empty-netter.

Of the 11 goals the Rangers have scored so far in this series, nine of them have come from just three players: Lafreniere has four, Barclay Goodrow has three and Vincent Trocheck has two. If they hope to head back to Broadway for Game 7, they’ll likely need someone else to play hero — and that’s Kreider’s calling card. His third-period hat trick finished the Hurricanes in the last round; maybe Thursday’s first point of this series is a sign of things to come? 

Coach Peter Laviolette juggled his lines a bit for Game 5, putting Filip Chytil back into the top six after a one-game rest and taking out Blake Wheeler. Jimmy Vesey remains the only injured Ranger.

The Blueshirt who has excelled the most in this series is Igor Shesterkin. With another 34 saves Thursday, his save percentage in this series is up to .934. He also leads all goalies left in the playoffs with 12.2 goals saved above expected in the postseason.

Florida Panthers

Although each team has scored seven goals at 5-on-5 through the first five games of this series, Florida has held a significant puck possession advantage, controlling 61.33% of expected goals. The Panthers' team shooting percentage of just 5.26% at 5-on-5 is also uncharacteristically low. They've averaged 7.42% in the playoffs and 7.67% during the regular season. But Shesterkin's heroics have been a factor here as much as any puck luck that could be due to turn Florida's way.

Three other factors are working in Florida's favor, however. Their best players are all putting up points, with three goals in this series from Sam Bennett, Sam Reinhart and Carter Vergaeghe, and Matthew Tkachuk and Aleksander Barkov adding offensive support. The Panthers have also drawn four more power-play opportunities than the Rangers over the first five games, and converted five times for a solid rate of 27.8%.

And while Sergei Bobrovsky's save percentage of .913 in the series pales next to Shesterkin's .934, Florida has allowed 39 fewer shots over the five games. His workload has been nearly eight shots per game lighter, and his goals-against average of 2.06 is the best of any goaltender in the conference final.

The Panthers are also healthy, which has allowed coach Paul Maurice to move players in and out of the lineup. Veteran Kyle Okposo swapped in for Nick Cousins for Game 4, so expect to see him stay in the mix after a pair of wins.

Rangers vs. Panthers

Betting Pick & Prediction

If the Panthers' history in these playoffs is anything to go by, they're due for a loss in Game 6. They needed two tries to close out both of their earlier series, after building a 3-0 series lead against the Tampa Bay Lightning and a 3-1 lead over the Boston Bruins.

Desperate teams also play their best hockey when their season is on the line. And if the Rangers don't seize this opportunity to play to their potential, that will be the end of the 'team of destiny' narrative and all the comparisons to the 1994 team.

Of course, that 1994 team was down 3-2 to the New Jersey Devils in the Eastern Conference Finals, and down 2-0 on the road in Game 6 before Mark Messier turned on the jets with his third-period natural hat trick.

If this group truly believes it's following a similar course, that could be enough to push the Rangers to Game 7. Having Shesterkin onside doesn't hurt either.

Although the margins of victory in this series have been razor-thin, the moneyline for Game 6 opened with the Rangers as +136 underdogs, and it's slipped above +140 as of Friday night.

That's enough value to justify backing the Blueshirts to bring the series back home for Game 7.

Pick: Rangers Moneyline (+145 at bet365 | Play down to +120)

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