The Florida Panthers and the Carolina Hurricanes meet in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final in the Stanley Cup Playoffs Thursday at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina. Puck drop is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET (TNT / truTV / Max). Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s NHL odds around the Panthers vs. Hurricanes odds and make our expert NHL picks and predictions.

Series: Panthers lead 1-0

The Panthers fired out to a 2-0 lead Tuesday with a pair of first-period goals from C Carter Verhaeghe and D Aaron Ekblad in the first 12:29. It’s a lead that Florida would never relinquish, leading wire-to-wire in a 5-2 victory in the series opener in Raleigh.

Hurricanes G Frederik Andersen, who entered the series with a 1.36 GAA in the playoffs, coughed up 5 goals on 20 shots in the loss. Andersen had allowed 2 or fewer goals in each of his previous 6 starts and 8 of 9 playoff games to date.

Carolina C Sebastian Aho had a goal in the first period, while RW Jackson Blake scored a meaningless power-play goal in the third period once veteran C Brad Marchand was ejected for his part in a dust-up late in the game with D Shayne Gostisbehere.

The Hurricanes are now 0-13 in the past 13 games in the conference finals round dating back to 2009. Their last victory in the round came in Game 7 of the 2006 Eastern Conference Final against the Buffalo Sabres.

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Panthers at Hurricanes odds

Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 1:20 p.m. ET.

Moneyline (ML): Panthers +110 (bet $100 to win $110) | Hurricanes -130 (bet $130 to win $100)Puck line (PL)/Against the spread (ATS): Panthers +1.5 (-250) | Hurricanes -1.5 (+200)Over/Under (O/U): 5.5 (O: +105 | U: -125)Panthers at Hurricanes projected goalies

Sergei Bobrovsky (9-4-0, 2.29 GAA, .905 SV%, 2 SO – postseason) vs. Frederik Andersen (7-3-0, 1.74 GAA, .919 SV%, 1 SO – postseason)

Bobrovsky allowed 4 or more goals in the first 3 games of the series against the Toronto Maple Leafs. However, he kicked aside 31 of the 33 shots he faced against Carolina in Game 1, and he has conceded just 6 total goals in his past 5 playoff starts, winning 4 of those outings.

Andersen was pounded for 5 goals on just 20 shots in Game 1, a shocking departure from his usual steady play. He had allowed 7 goals in his previous 5 starts, and he had won 5 of his past 6 outings before the Game 1 debacle at home.

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Panthers at Hurricanes picks and predictionsPrediction

Panthers 4, Hurricanes 2

The PANTHERS (+110) are a tremendous value in Game 2, even on visitor ice. The Hurricanes just cannot be trusted, having lost 13 consecutive games in the conference finals round.

Carolina looked rusty early on before getting back on track. On a positive note, Carolina outshot the Panthers in Game 1, it delivered 3 more hits, and it was solid in the faceoff circle at 60.0%. If Carolina can play more disciplined hockey and stay out of the box, we might be wrong here. However, the Panthers looked championship-caliber in Game 1, and that’s tough to ignore, especially at plus-money.

The Panthers +1.5 (-250) are too pricey, setting you back 2½ times your potential return. That’s too expensive if you require a little insurance and just cannot bring yourself to back Florida straight up for some reason.

PASS.

OVER 5.5 (+105) is a solid value a plus-money.

We saw the Panthers score 5 goals on their own in Game 1. While Andersen should be a bit better, the Hurricanes offense should be a little better, too. Carolina’s offense is averaging 3.5 goals per game in the past 4 playoff games.

Look for one more higher-scoring game in this series before both teams start to batten down the hatches as the series goes deeper and we get more physicality, defense and hitting.

For more sports betting picks and tips, check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW.

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