- The Tampa Bay Lightning are up 2-0 in the Stanley Cup Finals.
- The Montreal Canadiens are +110 underdogs, even playing at home in Game 3.
- The Canadiens need to win this game in order to keep the series interesting.
MONTREAL - The Tampa Bay Lightning are dominating the Stanley Cup Finals, and the third game is expected to go much the same way.
The Montreal Canadiens will be playing at home, and there’s some hope that they can throw a roadblock in the Lightning’s way, at least, but not much.
The Lightning have just been too good so far, winning Game 1 5-1 and Game 2 3-1. Now, they’re only two games away from winning the Stanley Cup, and they’ll be notably favored in both games.
Stanley Cup Finals Game 3 Moneyline Odds
- Tampa Bay Lightning -130
- Montreal Canadiens +110
The upside for the Canadiens is they’re expected to play the Lightning much closer at home than they were on the road. Some of this is due to the return of Canadiens coach Dominique Ducharme after a COVID-19 related absence.
His return, combined with the fact that the Canadiens are playing at home, has moved the lines significantly from where they were in the first two games.
In Tampa, the Lightning were sitting around -200 odds, but in Montreal, they’re only mild favorites, a notable step up for the Canadiens.
Stanley Cup Finals Game 3 Puck Line Odds
- Tampa Bay Lightning -1.5 (+195)
- Montreal Canadiens +1.5 (-235)
On the puck line, the Canadiens +1.5 are heavy favorites, as the online sportsbooks try to account for a potential home advantage. This advantage was not enough to make them favored on the moneyline, but once they were given the +1.5 puck line handicap, they were big time favorites.
It’s worth noting that Canadiens +1.5 on the puck line was a big favorite in the previous two games as well - not as big of one, but still a solid favorite.
The Lightning -1.5 covered the puck line in both of those games as the Canadiens were unable to score more than one goal in either of them.
Stanley Cup Final Game 3 3-Way Moneyline - Regulation Time
- Tampa Bay Lightning +115
- Draw +285
- Montreal Canadiens +185
When examining the three-way moneyline and comparing it to the overall moneyline, it seems like the online sportsbooks think that a tie is eminently possible.
The Lightning move from -130 to +115, a +45 point movement, while the Canadiens move from +110 to +185, a +75 point movement. A draw seems like a legitimate possibility in regulation time, which would seem to favor taking the Canadiens +1.5 on the puck line.
Overall, this is the best chance the Canadiens have to make this a series, and they’ll need to capitalize to keep this interesting.
Online gambling fans can wager on this matchup at the online sportsbooks. It will be broadcast today at 8 p.m. EST on NBC.