Sports Then and Now

Jean-Gabriel Pageau and the Ottawa Senators will look to rebound in game four vs. the New York Rangers.

The Ottawa Senators bolted out to a 2-0 lead in their semifinals series against the New York Rangers. But the latter cut into this lead with a dominant 4-1 victory in Game 3.

This doesn’t change the fact that Ottawa is still the favorite in this Eastern Conference series. However, the Rangers can no longer be overlooked after a decisive win in Madison Square Garden.

Who’s got the upper hand in Game 4? Which team should you bet on? Let’s answer these questions and more in this Game 4 betting preview

Senators vs Rangers Game 2 Odds

Point Spread: Ottawa +1.5 (-210); New York-1.5 (+175)
Money line: Ottawa +150; New York -170
Totals: 5 (over -105) (under -115)
Gametime: 7:30pm ET on Thursday, May 4

Ottawa Senators Game 4 Preview

Senators coach Gary Boucher was well aware that the Rangers would come out with energy.

“They were ready, they were hungry and they were desperate and we didn’t match that at all. That’s it,” said Boucher. “I wasn’t surprised by how they came out, we’ve been talking about it for two days now, and we talked about it with the players. Like I always say, you can talk about urgency as much as you want, but to create superficially is very difficult.”

The urgency was obvious early on, with Mats Zuccarello and Michael Grabner getting Ottawa on the board early. Rick Nash and Oscar Lindberg would each add goals in the second period, making the score 4-0.

It wasn’t until Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored a late goal that the Senators got on the board. But by then, it was too little too late.

The first order of business for Ottawa will be establishing the tone early on. In fact, the team talked at nauseam about setting the pace within the first 10 minutes. They did a solid job of doing so in the first couple of games, but failed to this in Game 3.

Disappearing players is another issue that the Senators need to fix. Derrick Brassard has now gone three straight games without scoring; Erik Karlsson was a minus-3 and didn’t score; and rookie defenseman Ben Harpur played poorly during the Rangers’ first two goals.

Ottawa is a better team than this, and they should bounce back with a stronger effort.

New York Rangers Game 4 Preview

Again, the story of this match was how strong New York started the game. And Rangers coach Alain Vigneault believes that the extra day of rest really helped his team. Of course, Vigneault also pointed to the 0-2 hole as providing extra motivation.

The mission for New York will be recreating the same conditions that led to their 4-0 start. One thing that the Rangers can count on is feeding off the energy of their home crowd.

The Madison Square Garden fans were a welcome sight to this weary Rangers team. They came out pressuring Ottawa from the get-go and ended up outshooting their opponents 30-27.

Center Derek Stephan also spoke about how the team gained confidence from their quick start. “Our group was confident,” said Stephan. “For the most part we were really solid.”

Vigneault appears to have confidence as well, going with the same lineup that suffered a late-game collapse in Game 2. Tanner Glass replacing Pavel Buchnevich on the fourth line was the only notable change in the third contest.

With the way that New York is rolling, we wouldn’t be surprised if Vigneault rolls with the same lineup again.

Betting Advice on Senators vs Rangers

One big problem for Ottawa heading into this game is that center Zach Smith and right-winger Bobby Ryan left Game 3 with injuries. It’s unclear whether they’ll play in Game 4. If they can’t go, it’ll severely impact the Senators.

As it is, betting experts from SportsBettingExperts.com like New York on the money line already. But they’re an even stronger favorite if Smith and Ryan can’t play. Keep checking pre-game news to see what their statuses are so you can gain an edge before the line moves.