Islanders vs. Hurricanes Game 5 odds, preview, prediction for 4/30: Expect Carolina to close it out

Islanders vs. Hurricanes Odds

Tuesday, April 30, 7:30 p.m. ET, TBS

Odds via bet365. Get up-to-the-minute NHL odds here.

New York Islanders

New York has seemingly blown its chance of moving on to the second round. Down 3-1 and heading back to Raleigh, the Islanders will need to win three straight, including two on the road, to complete the stunning upset. As we've seen, they don't have the metrics to do it.

Even at home the Isles could barely fend off a persistent Hurricanes attack, but they've looked substantially worse as the visitors. Keeping in mind that Game 4 went to double overtime, the Islanders have given up 10.8 high-danger chances per game. But even before the extra periods, New York had already allowed the Canes to hit double digits. For the third time in four outings, Carolina out-chanced the Islanders in quality opportunities in regulation, this time by a 12-10 margin.

Moreover, the Islanders aren't getting the offensive production to offset those defensive inefficiencies. The Isles have outscored their opponents at 5-on-5 just once so far in the series, failing to eclipse two goals in any of those contests. Worse, they aren't getting the requisite offensive production to improve output. Including the extra periods, New York is averaging 9.3 high-danger chances and 20.8 scoring chances per game. Included in that is the 11 combined quality chances they had through the first two games of the series.

The Islanders staved off elimination once, but that's the best they can hope for as they are poised to get overpowered by the Hurricanes in Game 5.

Carolina Hurricanes

As we saw throughout the regular season, the Hurricanes have asserted themselves as a powerful force in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. They are the quintessential postseason pests, playing with unrelenting defensive pressure and an opportunistic offense. With a few years of experience under their belts, they are showing that they are a force to be reckoned with in the playoffs.

Irrespective of venue, Carolina has been effective at dictating pace. They lead the postseason with a cumulative 59.7% Corsi rating, out-possessing the Islanders in all four contests. But the Canes' advantages are reflected in virtually every category. Through four games, the Hurricanes have 54.9% shots-for, 59.3% scoring and 53.8% high-danger chance ratings, reflecting their dominance in both ends of the ice.

Arguably the most important factor lending itself to ongoing success is Carolina's depth scoring. Already this postseason, they've got 10 multiple-point scorers and 10 goal scorers. That mimics their success in the regular season, when they had eight players tally at least 40 points and six players with 19 or more goals.

This is the momentum-building series the Canes needed to kickstart their playoff run. This time, there may be no slowing them down.

Islanders vs. Hurricanes

Betting Pick & Prediction

The last thing the Hurricanes can afford to do is let the Islanders carry their momentum into Game 5. Thankfully for Canes fans, we're not expecting that to be an issue.

Carolina has dominated this series from the outset, outplaying the Isles in every facet of the game. Although New York stole Game 4 in double overtime, it still looked out of sorts playing on home ice. With the series shifting back to Carolina, the Hurricanes will impose themselves on the visitors.

Depending on where you shop, we've seen this line tilt away from the Canes. Nevertheless, that only adds to the implied value of backing the hosts. We'll play this line below -260, giving bettors plenty of entry points.

Pick: Hurricanes -240 (PointsBet)