The Boston Bruins will need a win to avoid postseason elimination Friday when they visit the Ottawa Senators for Game 5 of their opening-round series as slim -120 betting favorites at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Boston mustered just 10 shots on goal over the final two periods of Game 4 en route to a 1-0 loss as -163 home chalk, leaving the club trailing Ottawa 3-1 in the series going into Friday night?s Bruins vs. Senators betting matchup at the Canadian Tire Centre. The Bruins have struggled to generate consistent offense throughout the series, failing to tally a first-period goal in each of the first four games, and are currently mired in a goalless drought exceeding 90 minutes.
Not surprisingly, Boston has been outshot in three of the first four games of the series and held to six or fewer shots on goal in five of the past six regulation periods in the set, putting added pressure on goaltender Tuukka Rask, who kept the Bruins in Game 4 with 26 saves.
The Bruins have lost five of six overall, scoring just 10 total goals during that stretch, according to the OddsShark NHL Database. The total was pegged at five goals in each of those contests, with the under prevailing on four occasions. The under has also paid out regularly in Bruins road games when the total is listed at five, going 9-4-1 in the past 14.
Boston?s offensive woes further compound the club?s recent struggles in visits to the Canadian capital. The Bruins? 2-1 win as -120 chalk in Game 1 marks the club’s sole victory in their last seven road dates with the Senators, including five defeats as betting chalk.
With wins in six of their past eight games overall, the Senators are showing no ill effects from a late-season swoon that saw them lose nine of 11 games and come perilously close to falling out of playoff contention.
The Senators surrendered two or fewer goals in five of those outings, and have played particularly strong defense against Boston, limiting the Bruins to two or fewer goals in nine of their past 12 meetings.
Ottawa has also performed well in the fifth game of recent playoff series, going 8-3 in its past 11, and has picked up the Game 5 win in each of its past five playoff matchups when holding a 3-1 series lead.
Conversely, Boston is 1-4 in its past five playoff games when facing elimination and has dropped to +350 on the odds to win the series.
Thumbnail photo via Bob DeChiara/USA TODAY Sports Images
