The Anaheim Ducks and Vegas Golden Knights have played a pair of low-scoring games to begin this series, but things could open up a bit more in Game 3 on Friday night. The Ducks are happy to see the series shift to Anaheim, as Joel Quenneville’s squad has been great at lighting the lamp on home ice all throughout this season. During the regular season, the Ducks ranked 8th in the NHL scoring 3.44 goals per game at home. For comparison, they ranked 16th scoring 3.02 goals per game on the road. Anaheim played 3 home games in the first round against Edmonton, as put up goal totals of 7, 4, and 5 in those contests. Furthermore, Anaheim has fired 62 shots on goal so far in this series. While they’ve generated just 4 goals up to this point, that total could have very easily been higher as the Ducks found many Grade A scoring chances in Games 1 and 2. I don’t expect them to miss those opportunities in Game 3.
Vegas had scored 4.5 goals per game over their last 4 contests before being held to just a single goal in Game 2. The Golden Knights had scored at least 2 goals in every postseason up until that point. Vegas is a veteran team full of players with plenty of playoff experience, and John Tortorella should have his team well-prepared for a bounce back performance. It’s also worth mentioning that both of these teams have been fairly undisciplined so far in this series, as we’ve seen 15 total power plays through 2 games. Only a single power play goal has been scored, but if the chances continue to pile up, it could be only a matter of time before one (or both) teams get their man advantages rolling. The over is the play.
Golden Knights vs Ducks prediction: Over 6 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to -115.