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Round 3 started on a winning note, with the Stars (+150) coming through for us in Game 1.

Let's keep the momentum going into Game 2 of the conference finals.

Dallas Stars (+140) @ Vegas Golden Knights (-160)

Not to be that guy, but what I wrote about this contest in my Game 1 preview rang very true Sunday night. I said the Golden Knights weren't scoring enough for all the offense they've been creating - most expected goals for in the playoffs - and that was a real concern against the Stars, who excel at suppressing offense. Vegas is the only Western Conference team with more expected goals than actual ones in the postseason, and if the Knights are going to win this series, they have to convert chances to goals at a much higher clip.

Well, my prediction was essentially Game 1's script - the Knights only mustered up five high-danger scoring chances and 1.4 expected goals for. Both are new lows for them in these playoffs, with their previous lows being 10 and 2.29. This postseason, the Knights have averaged 13.4 high-danger chances and 3.36 expected goals for per 60 minutes, painting a clear picture of just how low the first game's totals are.

Having come through back-to-back series against the defensively challenged Chicago Blackhawks and Vancouver Canucks, the first game against a Dallas team capable of playing a suffocating defensive game was a reality check for Vegas. I'd expect a strong response from the Knights in Game 2, but this price is still too high for me to pass up.

Pick: Stars (+140)

New York Islanders (+160) @ Tampa Bay Lightning (-180)

The Lightning remain my Stanley Cup favorite, but what happened in Game 1 against the Islanders was an anomaly. New York was coming off an emotional Game 7 win, while Tampa Bay had the chance to rest and focus.

And it didn't help that the Islanders couldn't buy a save - Thomas Greiss let in three goals on nine shots before Semyon Varlamov allowed five on 25 in relief. That's basically how the Lightning scored eight goals, despite a mark of just 2.87 expected goals for. Oh, and the insane number of shots hitting the net didn't hurt, either.

The series opener wasn't nearly as lopsided as the score suggests, so we can expect to see a much tighter contest in Game 2. Tampa managed just 1.46 expected goals for at five-on-five, so it's not like the Isles were defensively bad Monday, but Barry Trotz will demand a stifling effort in response to the 8-2 loss. With some better goaltending - because it can't possibly get any worse - the second matchup should better represent this series going forward.

Pick: Under 5.5 (-125)

(Odds source: theScore Bet)

Alex Moretto is a sports betting writer for theScore. A journalism graduate from Guelph-Humber University, he has worked in sports media for over a decade. He will bet on anything from the Super Bowl to amateur soccer, is too impatient for futures, and will never trust a kicker. Find him on Twitter @alexjmoretto.

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Jon Cooper isn't expecting another blowout victory for his Tampa Bay Lightning in the Eastern Conference Final.

"You've got to take advantage of a tired team," the head coach told the assembled media, including Fox Sports Florida, after the Lightning rolled to an 8-2 win over the New York Islanders in Game 1 on Monday. "Let's be honest. This is a one-off."

New York eliminated the Philadelphia Flyers in Game 7 of its second-round series on Saturday. Meanwhile, the Lightning finished off the Boston Bruins in Game 5 of their matchup on Aug. 31.

Lightning stars Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov both racked up five points in Tampa Bay's Game 1 win. Point scored twice, including a dazzling first-period marker, but he downplayed his squad's dominance postgame.

"Let's be honest, we got a lot of bounces tonight," Point said, according to Bryan Burns of the team's website. "Things went well for us. We can't hang our hat on that."

Point may be on to something. Despite the six-goal margin, the possession and scoring-chance figures show the game was more evenly contested than it appeared.

(Courtesy: Natural Stat Trick, all stats at 5-on-5)

Game 2 is scheduled for Wednesday night at 8 p.m. ET.

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Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov notched five points apiece as the Tampa Bay Lightning demolished the New York Islanders 8-2 to open the Eastern Conference Final on Monday night.

The superstar duo became the first two players in team history to register five points in a playoff game.

Point produced two goals and three assists, while Kucherov collected a goal and four helpers.

Yanni Gourde added a pair of markers for the Lightning, who also received goals from fellow forward Ondrej Palat and defensemen Victor Hedman and Ryan McDonagh.

Jordan Eberle and Nick Leddy provided the lone tallies for the Islanders.

Kucherov's goal moved him past Martin St. Louis as Tampa Bay's all-time playoff goals leader.

McDonagh's marker chased New York's starting goaltender Thomas Greiss late in the first period. The German netminder allowed three goals on nine shots before Semyon Varlamov replaced him. Varlamov didn't fare much better, stopping 20 of the 25 shots he faced.

Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy allowed two goals on 24 shots.

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Ottawa Senators forward Bobby Ryan has won the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy for the 2019-20 season, the NHL announced Monday.

The honor is bestowed annually upon the player who "best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey," with the Professional Hockey Writers Association voting on the award. Dallas Stars defenseman Stephen Johns and Philadelphia Flyers forward Oskar Lindblom were the other two finalists.

Ryan left the Senators to enter the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program in November. He rejoined the club in late February and notched a hat trick in his first home game following his return.

The 33-year-old later revealed he had struggled with alcohol abuse.

Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Robin Lehner won the Masterton Trophy last season while with the New York Islanders.

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Nashville Predators forward Mikael Granlund will be available as a free agent this offseason.

“We will be seeing what the open market has to offer,” his representative, Todd Diamond, told The Athletic's Adam Vingan on Monday.

When asked if Granlund has ruled out rejoining the Predators, Diamond declined to answer directly, instead reiterating that his client won't re-sign before free agency begins.

Granlund will be one of the top free-agent forwards. The 28-year-old struggled after the Minnesota Wild traded him to Nashville in 2018-19, and he remained inconsistent at the start of this season.

However, the Finnish veteran raised his game when the Predators hired John Hynes to replace Peter Laviolette as their head coach in January. Granlund posted only six goals and 14 points across the first 35 games of the campaign under Laviolette, but he led the club with 11 goals in the 28 regular-season contests following Hynes' hiring. His average ice time also rose from 16:45 to 19:07 after the coaching change.

The Wild traded Granlund to the Predators for forward Kevin Fiala in February 2019. Granlund spent the first six seasons of his career with Minnesota, which dealt him to Nashville during his seventh. The Wild drafted him ninth overall in 2010.

Granlund is in the final campaign of a three-year, $17.25-million contract he inked with Minnesota in summer 2017.

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The NHL's bubble plan continues to work, as the league maintained zero positive COVID-19 tests among staff and players for the seventh consecutive week, it announced Monday.

The streak of zero positive tests includes the week leading up to the restart and all six weeks of playoff action thus far.

A total of 2,543 tests have been administered since the start of Phase 4.

All four remaining teams are now based in the Edmonton hub after the Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Islanders traveled from Toronto to participate in the Eastern Conference Final.

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Vegas Golden Knights head coach Peter DeBoer believes his club didn't play nearly well enough to earn a win in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final on Sunday.

"Bottom line is we got what we deserved," DeBoer said following the 1-0 defeat to the Dallas Stars, according to The Athletic's Jesse Granger. "We didn't play hard enough for long enough tonight."

After a dramatic Game 7 victory over the Vancouver Canucks to reach their second conference finals in three years of existence, the top-seeded Golden Knights put together one of their worst performances of the playoffs.

Vegas managed only 46.91% of the shot attempts, 34.29% of scoring chances, and 41.39% of expected goals for the contest at five-on-five, according to Natural Stat Trick.

DeBoer added that the Stars present a different challenge than Vegas' previous playoff opponents did.

"This is going to be a different series," he said. "We haven't played the best defensive team or one of the top two defensive teams in the league yet. So this is going to be a different series, and we're going to have to get our head around that and find a way to create offense. It's not going to look or feel like the last series or the (Chicago Blackhawks) series."

Dallas ranked second in goals against during the regular season, allowing only 2.52 per contest.

Game 2 goes Tuesday evening.

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