New York RangersNew York Rangers vs. Carolina HurricanesCarolina Hurricanes Pick Center

Bet Now
Time: 07:30 P.M. EST Venue: PNC Arena RALEIGH, N. C. -- The season-opening road stretch didn't treat the Carolina Hurricanes well so they'll have to do better upon beginning their ventures at PNC Arena. The New York Rangers have been in a better groove during the first couple of weeks of the season. The teams meet Friday night in Carolina's much-awaited home opener. The Rangers (5-2-0), who've won three games in a row, present a challenging task for the Hurricanes." They've got unbelievable speed and they're going to push the pace," Carolina coach Bill Peters said. The Hurricanes are 1-3-2, failing to hold leads in a couple games and failing to hold down opponents early in other outings." We will fix it," Peters said. "We're scoring, but we're reckless when we're scoring. Right now it's not clicking. It's not clicking for 60 minutes." The Rangers needed a comeback to beat Boston, scoring five consecutive goals Wednesday night." One of the team's trademarks is that we come out and we're ready to play," Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said, expressing concern about a shaky beginning to the game. Peters was determined to make the first two weeks positive for the Hurricanes, realizing that road swing had the potential to be daunting. It's on the verge of become a devastating October unless the two home games in three days help turn things around." I think we need to have a good start," said Carolina center Victor Rask. "I think that's real important." The Hurricanes have had a couple of days off since stumbling Tuesday night at Detroit. For the Hurricanes, it will be the official home introduction for eight players on the active roster, including right wingers Lee Stempniak, who has racked up four goals and two assists already this season, and rookie Sebastian Aho. Others who'll make their Carolina home debuts if they're in the lineup are left wingers Bryan Bickell, Viktor Stalberg and Teuvo Teravainen, right winger Martin Frk, and defensemen Klas Dahlbeck and Jakub Nakladal. Even with the recent success, the Rangers are making roster adjustments. They placed defenseman Dylan McIlrath on waivers Thursday." On our team right now, he's our eighth defenseman," Vigneault said. "That's where we are. Maybe it's less about him and more about the other guys. ... He needs to play. He's a young player." McIlrath, 24, will be sent to Hartford of the American Hockey League if he passes through waivers. Meanwhile, Rangers left winger Josh Jooris will be out for up to a month with a shoulder injury sustained Wednesday night. Right winger Pavel Buchnevich will be in the lineup. Henrik Lundqvist draws the start in goal for the Rangers. He's 23-10-1 in 34 career appearances against Carolina. Vigneault also pointed out that with it being Carolina's home opener, there could be an additional layer of energy in the building. Added Rangers forward Derek Stepan: "The big focus for us is not to be down. You want to play with the lead in this league. ... In order to make these last few games stick, this game is huge. You want to make sure you're playing the right way going into Carolina's building."

Looking for More Picks?

You can browse all the individual handicapper picks below.

TheJSharp.com

Latest NHL News

RocSheridan.com
DynamicSportsPlays.com