It has been an absolutely electric start to the much-anticipated Stanley Cup Finals matchup between the Vegas Golden Knights and Carolina Hurricanes.
Both Carolina and Vegas took turns racing out to 2-0 leads in the first two games of the series, but the club that struck first in each contest ultimately came away with a loss in a nail-biter.
After stealing Game 1 on the road, the Golden Knights were an overtime period away from taking a 2-0 lead on the Hurricanes’ home floor, but a game-winning strike from Seth Jarvis knotted the series up at 1-1 for Carolina.
With the Golden Knights still priced as a slight +110 underdog, who will take this pivotal Game 3 with this series heading to Vegas?
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First Pick: Carolina Hurricanes ML (-108) over Vegas Golden Knights
Rundown: Through their dominant postseason run, the Hurricanes are 2-2 in Game 1s, and 11-0 in all other playoff games.
The Hurricanes have undergone an adjustment period through these first two games, as the Golden Knights’ expected goals of 3.2 has outpaced Carolina’s 2.67, but they’ve survived their slow start to the series to maintain a 1-1 tie.
The Hurricanes have shown to figure out each opponent they’ve faced this postseason the longer the series has gone on, and are 6-0 on the road with a 20-8 scoring margin.
With the Golden Knights in a potential letdown spot following a brutal Game 2 loss, expect the Hurricanes to steal back homecourt in Game 3.
Second Pick: Vegas Golden Knights vs. Carolina Hurricanes – Under 5.5
Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Jun 4, 2026; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; Vegas Golden Knights right wing Mitch Marner (93) controls the puck against Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Jalen Chatfield (5) during the third period in game two of the 2026 Stanley Cup Final at Lenovo Center.
Rundown: The high-scoring shootouts we've seen in this series have done little to move the over/under, but we're choosing not to chase the points from the first two games.
Carolina has been the most elite defense in the NHL this postseason, and their ability to shut down the Montreal Canadiens powered them to the Stanley Cup Finals without needing their top-unit offensively to be firing on all cylinders.
Games 1 and 2 of this series have hit the over, but the Hurricanes last four road playoff games have gone under, with the under being 5-1 in their six total road playoff games.
Vegas has additionally tightened up defensively through the postseason, with the under going 5-2-1 in their eight home playoff games.
Expect Game 3 to be another nail-biter, but this time in a close, low-scoring affair.