The Colorado Avalanche are streaking (despite coming off a loss) and the Vancouver Canucks slumping. Will those trends continue Friday when the teams meet for just the second time this season? The Avalanche are short road favorites on the Mybookie NHL odds for the Avalanche vs Canucks.
Avalanche vs Canucks 2020 NHL Game Preview & Betting Odds
- When: Friday, 10 PM ET
- Where: Rogers Arena
- TV: NHL Center Ice
- Opening NHL Lines: Avalanche -130, Canucks +120 (total 5.5)
Back to work tonight!!#GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/yiFjpbNrSU
— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) March 6, 2020
Avalanche vs Canucks Season Series
Avalanche lead 1-0 thanks to a 5-4 overtime victory in Vancouver on Nov. 16. Nathan MacKinnon scored his second goal of the game just 27 seconds into the extra period. Colorado led 4-2 with 2:37 left in the third before Alex Edler and Brock Boeser scored 1:37 apart with Vancouver goalie Thatcher Demko on the bench for an extra attacker, sending the game to the 3-on-3 overtime. Andre Burakovsky had a goal and an assist, and Nazem Kadri and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare also scored for Colorado. Rookie defenseman Cale Makar added four assists. Colorado goalie Antoine Bibeau, who was making his first NHL start since the 2016-17 season when he started two games for Toronto, stopped 28 shots. Adam Gaudette had two power-play goals for Vancouver, while Leivo had two assists and Demko finished with 18 saves.
Why Bet on Colorado?
The Avs had a seven-game winning streak snapped in a 4-3 overtime home loss to a bad Anaheim team on Wednesday. Rickard Rakell scored with 1.2 seconds remaining in overtime, and Ryan Miller stopped 32 shots for the Ducks. Rakell’s shot appeared to deflect off the stick of Avalanche defenseman Samuel Girard and past goaltender Pavel Francouz. It was Rakell’s first goal since Jan. 31.
The 39-year-old Miller earned career NHL win No. 386 to move by Mike Vernon and into sole possession of 15th place. Miller also matched Tom Barrasso (777) for second place on the NHL’s all-time games played list among U.S.-born goaltenders, the team said.
Colorado star Nathan MacKinnon had a goal and assist in the loss. MacKinnon set up a first-period goal by Vladislav Namestnikov and scored his 34th marker of the season during a third-period power play to end a seven-game goalless slump. MacKinnon is up to 88 points through 66 games.
Namestnikov scored for a second straight game; Namestnikov has two goals and one assist in five games with the Avalanche since he was acquired from Ottawa at the trade deadline. Tyson Jost contributed two assists. Jost had the secondary assist on power-play goals by Gabriel Landeskog and MacKinnon. Jost has been working on the top power-play unit due to injuries and has two goals and four assists in the last five games.
Landeskog scored a goal and had two assists. He has 19 goals and 18 assists on the season and is on a six-game points streak. Francouz surrendered four goals on 30 shots. Prior to Wednesday, Francouz had allowed just eight goals in his last six starts. He continues to start most nights with Philipp Grubauer out with a lower-body injury.
Team Stats
Offense- Goals: 3.42
- Shots: 32.61
- PP/PK Percentage: 18.86
- Goals: 2.68
- Shots: 31.48
- PP/PK Percentage: 19.39
Why Bet on Vancouver?
Vancouver lost its fourth in a row Wednesday, 4-2 at home to Arizona – the Canucks haven’t scored more than three goals in any of the games during the skid. Lawson Crouse and Oliver Ekman-Larsson’s third-period goals led Arizona to the win. Crouse scored his 15th goal of the year by tipping in an Ekman-Larsson point shot at 12:39 of the third for the game-winner. Ekman-Larsson then added an empty-netter to clinch. The teams combined for five goals and two lead changes in a wild third period. Arizona goalie Darcy Kuemper made 36 saves.
It was the second straight game the Canucks have surrendered a third-period lead. “We are kind of shooting ourselves in the foot,” said Tanner Pearson. “We need to do the opposite. We need to put our foot down and stomp on their throats.”
Tyler Toffoli and Pearson scored less than three minutes apart for the Canucks in the third. Toffoli tied the game at 1-1 after receiving a pass from J.T. Miller. One of the most coveted players on the trade market prior to the deadline, Toffoli has been rolling since being acquired by the Canucks from Los Angeles. He now has five goals and two assists in his first seven games with his new team. Miller now has at least a point in six of his last seven games. He has 26 goals and 69 points in 66 contests in 2019-20.
Thatcher Demko stopped 36 of 39 shots. Demko and starter Jacob Markstrom have each struggled recently, and Markstrom is now sidelined with an injury. Demko has permitted 21 goals in his last six starts.
Blueliner Tyler Myers sat out with an undisclosed injury and is day-to-day. The veteran has six goals and 21 points in 65 games this season. Jordie Benn, who was a healthy scratch for 22 of the previous 28 games, took his place. Center Jay Beagle also sat with an undisclosed injury. Beagle has two goals and eight points in 55 matches.
Team Stats
Offense- Goals: 3.27
- Shots: 31.3
- PP/PK Percentage: 24.02
- Goals: 3.15
- Shots: 33.18
- PP/PK Percentage: 20.29
Avalanche vs Canucks Game Trends
- Avalanche are 5-13 in the last 18 meetings in Vancouver.
- Underdog is 5-2 in the last 7 meetings.
- Avalanche are 12-28 in the last 40 meetings.
- Over is 4-0 in the last 4 meetings in Vancouver.
Avalanche vs Canucks Expert Prediction
Avalanche 3, Canucks 2
