Desperation Time in Calgary: Flames Must Win Game 5 to Extend the Battle of Alberta
Despite the Flames’ problems over the past three losses, oddsmakers are firmly in their corner for Game 5. Calgary is priced at 1.62 (-150) on the moneyline, which comes back at 2.35 (+135) on the Oilers.
After dropping the last two games in Edmonton, the Flames return home to the Scotiabank Saddledome on Thursday night with their season on the line.
Calgary is down 3-1 and desperate to extend the series that's become known as the "Battle of Alberta."
Thus far, the real title should probably be the Massacre of Alberta, or better yet -- the Connor McDavid Show. Edmonton and their superstar have been unstoppable. The Oilers have shocked the Flames and mystified oddsmakers by winning three straight. One more victory puts them into the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2006.
Meanwhile, the Flames were prohibitive favorites to handle the Oilers. But their only victory was that tumultuous 9-6 win in Game 1, which seems like a very long time ago.
The puck drops in Calgary in what could be the Flames final game of the season at 7:30 pm MST.
Spreads.ca has installed Calgary as decisive favourites. The O/U is 6.5, shaded to the OVER.
Prediction (powered by Pointspreads.ca):
Bad news for Calgary fans and Canadian hockey viewers who want to watch this rivalry extended -- we haven’t seen anything yet to suggest goaltender Markstrom will suddenly find his groove with his team facing elimination.
Edmonton has won the past three games by 2+ goal margins, so it might be a good flyer to bet the Oilers on the puck line.
However, the better value is on the moneyline, which means we're backing the confident team with all the momentum to finish the job and advance to Round 3. We love getting back 4:3 odds on our money with the underdogs.
It might be time to start believing in the Edmonton Oilers.
