Oilers-Avs: Bet on early goals in NHL Western Conference Finals

Fresh off the holiday weekend, the headlining events for the next few nights are the Stanley Cup Playoff Conference Finals, with Celtics-Warriors Game 1 not tipping off until Thursday evening. We didn't have the right read on Carolina-New York on Memorial Day, but we won't need to dig in to the Rangers' next foe until tomorrow. Today is all about the West in the NHL.

High-flying offenses hit the ice in Edmonton-Colorado series - For a league hoping to grow its popularity and marketability, the NHL has gotten a gift with this Oilers vs. Avalanche matchup. Two of the top players in the league, Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon, will skate opposite each other in this high-profile series. What makes this showdown so compelling is that neither team is reliant on just its stars. These are deep teams with talented playmakers, like Leon Draisaitl for Edmonton and Cale Makar for Colorado. As we look at Game 1, we have an inflated over/under set at 7 goals and the host Avalanche as heavy favorites. 

We're not in love with either of those picks, so let us recommend a few creative ways to get invested in tonight's big game. With tremendous offenses on both ends, we'll be betting on both teams to score in the first period at +120. Two of the three regular-season meetings between these teams went to overtime, so we'll also be placing a fractional bet on this game to repeat that pattern. You can bet on overtime at +350 on DraftKings. It's hard to look anywhere but MacKinnon at +110 if you want a piece of a goal scorer bet.

In other news...

Quick turnaround for Rangers, start series against the Lightning tomorrow - New York started Game 7 strong yesterday, netting two quick goals en route to a 6-2 victory over Carolina on the road. Now, the Rangers have home ice against the two-time defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning. The story of this series is likely to focus in on the two goalkeepers. Andrei Vasilevskiy of Tampa has proven to be one of the most dominant postseason goalies in history, while Igor Shesterkin for New York was the best netminder all season long. Expect low-scoring affairs. New York is +150 to win the series, while Tampa Bay is -175.

NCAA Baseball Tournament gets going this weekend - The NCAA baseball tournament field was finalized on Monday, with Tennessee leading the way as the top overall seed. Currently 53-7 on the year, the Volunteers are the favorites from the 64-team field to win it all at +250. Keep an eye on Texas A&M, who have been piecing together wins against SEC foes for the past month. The Aggies have odds at +2500 to win the tournament.

Aaron Donald unsure of a return this season - Is this just a negotiating tactic, or would star defensive tackle Aaron Donald really walk away from football? The new Super Bowl champion said he's "at peace" with his career if this is the end of the road. However, Donald did just sign with Kanye West's sports agency, so we're confident he will be a Ram this season. Los Angeles has retained many of its key contributors and made new additions as well. The Rams are currently +125 to win the NFC West, and with no more Russell Wilson, the 49ers reportedly unhappy with Trey Lance and the drama in Arizona, that feels like a strong bet for this upcoming season.

Today's Bark Bets is written by Griffin Carroll