NHL Playoffs Weekend Preview

Here’s a look at the two conference final series on tap for NHL betting this weekend:

Friday - San Jose Sharks at Chicago Blackhawks

The Chicago Blackhawks left the San Jose Sharks flat-footed in their own rink, winning both games at HP Pavilion to open the Western Conference final. The Blackhawks used their physical brand of hockey to bully the Sharks’ defense and keep San Jose's deep forward corps in check. The Sharks have managed just three goals heading into Friday's Game 3 in Chicago.

Rookie goaltender Antti Niemi has been great between the pipes, turning away all but three of the 72 shots faced in the first two games of the series. Niemi made 44 saves in Game 1 then turned away 25 of 27 shots in Game 2's 4-2 win. However, he hasn't been as solid at home this postseason, going just 3-3 inside the United Center with a 2.82 goals-against average and an .887 save percentage.

Sharks goaltender Evgeni Nabokov is under fire after the first two games of this series. He's allowed six goals on 62 shots, and is having a tough time finding position with all the traffic in front of the net. Chicago bruiser Dustin Byfuglien is doing the same thing to Nabokov as he did to Vancouver's Roberto Luongo in the second round. The winger is making a living out of blocking goaltenders, scoring twice in this series and totaling six goals this postseason.

Saturday - Philadelphia Flyers at Montreal Canadiens

Heading into Thursday's Game 3 at the Bell Centre the Montreal Canadiens were desperately trying to solve Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Michael Leighton. As of Thursday, Montreal had yet to score a goal in the series, getting blanked on all 58 shots they’d taken. 

Leading scorers Mike Cammalleri and Brian Gionta were limited to just two shots in the first game of the series but managed to pepper the Flyers’ defense for a total of 12 shots on goal in Game 2's 3-0 loss. Cammalleri and Gionta were incredible in the first two rounds of the playoffs and will be looking to draw from the hometown crowd this weekend. 

Philadelphia hasn't had any issues scoring. Forward Daniel Briere has been on fire this postseason, leading the team with 18 points in the playoffs including two goals in this series heading into Thursday. Briere netted a power-play goal to open the scoring in Game 2. Simon Gagne is filling the net as well – he also scored on the man advantage in Game 2. Gagne had two goals against the Canadiens and six total in the postseason heading into Thursday.