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The Florida Panthers will face the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday in Sin City. It is a 2023 Stanley Cup Final rematch as we continue our NHL odds series and make a Panthers-Golden Knights prediction and pick.
The Golden Knights are 10-8 in the past 18 games against the Panthers. Recently, the Cats defeated the Knights 4-3 on October 19, 2024 in Sunrise. The Golden Knights and Panthers have split the past 1o games. Also, the Knights are 4-1 in the past five regular-season games at home against the Cats.
Here are the Panthers-Golden Knights NHL odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
NHL Odds: Panthers-Golden Knights Odds
Florida Panthers: +1.5 (-260)
Moneyline: +104
Vegas Golden Knights: -1.5 (+205)
Moneyline: -125
Over: 5.5 (-134)
Under: 5.5 (+110)
How To Watch Panthers vs Golden Knights
Time: 8 PM ET/5 PM PT
TV: ESPN+ and Scripps
*Watch NHL games LIVE with fuboTV (Get Access | Save $30)*
Why the Panthers Could Cover the Spread/Win
The Panthers might swing some deals to try and improve their chances of repeating as Stanley Cup champions. While they are still doing well, coming into this second in second place in the Atlantic Division, there is still work to do. This game will end a four-game Western Conference trip that started with a 5-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks and continued with a 2-1 loss to the Los Angeles Kings. Significantly, the Cats looked tired in that game and seemed to exhaust all their energy against the Ducks the prior night. This game with the Knights will also be the second of a back-to-back. Ultimately, they hope to replicate what they did last time.
The Panthers trailed 1-0 after the first period of their win over the Golden Knights. Yet, they tied it one minute into the second period, thanks to a goal from Sam Reinhart. The Cats tied the game with 40 seconds left in the second period, thanks to a powerplay goal from Sam Bennett. The Panthers allowed the Golden Knights to retake the lead in the third. Finally, Eutu Luostarainen leveled the playing field with a game-tying goal. Gustav Forsling tallied the game-winning goal in overtime.
The Panthers offense looked relentless, firing 49 shots on the goal. Furthermore, they went 1 for 2 on the powerplay. The Cats won 43 percent of their faceoffs.
Sergei Bobrovsky will start for the Panthers if he does not start on Saturday. If he does, then Spencer Knights will start. Whoever starts will play behind a defense that killed the only penalty in the last game, leveled 17 hits, and blocked 17 shots.
The Panthers will cover the spread if their offense can continue to fire shots at the net and generate many chances. Then, the defense and goaltending must cut down the angles.
Why the Golden Knights Could Cover the Spread/Win
William Karlsson is week-to-week, and that is a major loss for the Golden Knights as they attempt to get back to the Stanley Cup for the second time in three seasons. Unfortunately, this adds to the list of problems. Yes, they still are barely hanging onto first in the Pacific Division with a one-point lead over the Edmonton Oilers. But they have also endured a horrible stretch, going 2-6-1 in their past nine games. To fix those issues, the Knights need to score and do it first.
The Golden Knights held three leads against the Panthers last time and simply could not hold on. Overall, Tanner Pearson, Keegan Kolesar, and Brett Howden delivered the goals. Jack Eichel, Tomas Hertl, and Ivan Barbashev all failed to get on the scoresheet. The Golden Knights fired 26 shots. Yet, they also went 0 for 1 on the powerplay and could not take advantage of their chances despite winning 57 percent of the faceoffs.
The Vegas goaltending has not been great and suffered even more on Friday against the Dallas Stars. When they lost to the Panthers last time, they went 1 for 2 on the penalty kill. The defense leveed 25 hits and blocked 28 shots.
The Golden Knights will cover the spread if their star players can find ways to generate some scoring. Then, the defense must do a better job of preventing the Panthers from getting easy chances.
Final Panthers-Golden Knights Prediction & Pick
The Panthers are 24-25 against the spread, while the Golden Knights are 31-18 against the spread. Moreover, the Cats are 14-11 against the spread on the road, while the Knights are 16-9 against the spread at home. The Panthers are 25-24 against the over/under, while the Knights are 23-24-2 against the over/under.
The Panthers may be tired after this game. However, I don't think it will affect them too much, as this team is too talented to completely stumble. The Cats will make this game and find a way to cover the spread on the road.
Final Panthers-Golden Knights Prediction & Pick: Florida Panthers +1.5 (-260)
