The Florida Panthers (52-24-6) travel to face off against the New York Rangers (54-23-4) on Friday, May 24th. This game will be played at Madison Square Garden in New York and televised on ESPN. Both team’s come into this one having won their previous games. Puck drop is set for 8:00 ET.

Panthers vs Rangers

The Florida Panthers Are Coming Off A Win

As the third-ranked team in the Eastern Conference, the Florida Panthers have been favored in 67 of their 82 games this season. On the road, the Panthers have gone 26-11-4, and they have won four straight games overall.

Over their last ten games, Florida has gone 7-3, and they have won five straight games when favored. In the Atlantic Division, the Panthers are in first place with a record of 17-9, and they have gone 52-24-6 overall.

Florida enters the game with an average scoring differential of +.8 goals per game. So far, they have 33 wins by multiple goals and 19 by just one goal. When playing on the road, the Panthers have a puck line record of 27-14, and their average scoring margin is +1.1 goals per game. Over their last 10 games, Florida has a puck line record of 5-5.

On the season, the Panthers have gone 41-41 against the puck line, including a record of 29-38 when favored. In their last three games, Florida has a puck line record of 1-2, and their puck line record for the season is 41-41. So far, the Panthers have gone 12-3 against the puck line as the underdog.

The Panthers most recently faced the Maple Leafs at home and achieved a 5-2 win. The first period saw the Panthers being held without a goal, but they turned things around offensively by scoring four times in the second period and one goal in the third. All five goals came at even strength. They finished with 42 shots on goal and had 12 turnovers.

Florida secured a win against the puck line, entering the game as the favorites with a -1.5 goal advantage. The combined total of 7 goals exceeded the over/under line, which was set at 6 goals for the game.

The New York Rangers Are Coming Off A Win

Heading into the final game of the season, the Rangers have already clinched the top spot in the Eastern Conference and the Metropolitan Division. On the year, they have gone 54-23-4, including a 29-11-0 record at home. Over their last ten games, New York is 7-3 and has won two straight games.

When playing against other teams in the Eastern Conference, the Rangers have gone 34-16, and they have been favored in 64 of their 81 games this season. As the underdog, New York has gone 11-4-2, and they have won three straight games in games where they were not favored.

When playing at home, the Rangers have an average scoring margin of +.7 goals per game. So far, they have gone 18-22 against the puck line at home and 40-41 overall. Overall, New York has 31 wins by multiple goals and 23 wins by just one goal.

As the underdog, the Rangers have a puck line record of 15-2, and their puck line record for the season sits at 25-39. In their last ten games at home, the team has gone 5-5 against the puck line, and their average scoring differential when playing as the underdog is +1 goal per game.

The Rangers recently hosted the Senators and emerged victorious with a 4-0 win. Against the Senators, the Rangers’ offense scored in all three periods. The New York offense recorded 34 shots on goal and successfully netted one time while short-handed during the game.

New York also picked up a win against the puck line, coming into the game favored by -1.5. The game ended below the over/under line of 6.5, with a combined total of 4 goals.

Florida Offense Breakdown

In terms of their offensive performance, the Panthers are averaging 3.2 goals per game this season, putting them in the 11th spot in the NHL. When it comes to shots on goal per game, they are ranked 2nd in the league. In terms of power play goals, the Panthers offense is 6th in power play goals. As for shorthanded goals, they are 10th in the NHL.

The Panthers come in with an over/under record of 30-49-3. Over the course of the season, they have had 45 games failing to surpass the 5.5 goal over/under line. The average number of goals in their games is at 5.7 per game.

Rangers Offense Breakdown

For their offensive performance, the Rangers come in averaging 3.4 goals per game this season, which is 9th in the NHL. In the category of shots on goal per game, they are 14th in the league. Looking at how the Rangers’ offense is performing during power plays, they are 7th in power play goals and 11th in shorthanded goals.

For the season, the over/under record of the Rangers’ stands at 44-34-3. They have had 50 games during the season that exceeded the 5.5 over/under line. On average, their games are averaging 6.3 goals per game.

Florida Team Defense

Defensively, the Panthers come into the season ranked 29th in goals allowed. Opponents are averaging 27.6 shots per game against Florida. For the season, they are ranked 3rd in shutouts, coming in with 8 shutouts.

New York Team Defense

Defensively, the Rangers come into the season ranked 22nd in goals allowed. Opponents are averaging 29.3 shots per game against New York. For the season, they are ranked 14th in shutouts, coming in with 5 shutouts.

Panthers vs Rangers Trends

• Across their five previous road games, Florida has an puck line mark of 2-3. Their straight up record in these matchups was 4-1 while averaging 3 goals per game.
• Although New York has a straight up record of 1-2 in their last three home games, they have not held up as well vs the puck line going 1-2. The team averaged 1 goals per game in these games.
• Going back to their previous three games as the underdog, New York has an puck line mark of 2-1 while going 1-2 straight up.
• As the betting favorite, the Panthers have an puck line mark of just 4-6 in their last ten games. Florida posted a straight up mark of 7-3 in these matchups.

Panthers vs Rangers Prediction

When it comes to a moneyline wager, I’m going with the Rangers to defeat the Panthers while playing at home. Given the current moneyline odds at -108, I’m placing a wager on the Rangers to win outright.

If you’re looking to get a bet down on this matchup, we foresee the Rangers winning the underdog. However, if you’re not as confident in the Rangers straight-up, we’d still recommend placing a bet on them to cover the puck line.

When considering the over/under line, which is currently at 5.5 goals, we believe that this game will go over that threshold, and we recommend wagering on the over.

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All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!

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* All odds are provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.Action247 does not warrant the accuracy of completeness of the information, text, graphics, links or other items contained within these post.