Were the Stanley Cup playoffs to start today – they don’t – then both the Vancouver Canucks and Colorado Avalanche would miss out; the Avs are in better than in terms of potentially grabbing a wild-card spot and are home NHL betting odds favorites Wednesday night against the Canucks.
Canucks vs Avalanche NHL Spread & Prediction
- When: Wednesday, 9:30 PM ET
- Where: Pepsi Center
- TV: NHL Center Ice
- Live Stream: NHL.tv
- NHL Spread: Colorado Avalanche -180 / Vancouver Canucks +150 (Total 6.5)
Oilers vs Maple Leafs NHL Betting Odds & Expert Pick
Season Series
Last meeting, with Canucks leading 2-0. They won 7-6 in overtime at home on Nov. 2. Superstar Canucks rookie Elias Pettersson had two goals and three assists, scoring the tying goal in the final minute of regulation and then setting up Derrick Pouliot’s winner late in overtime. Pettersson became the youngest player in the franchise with at least five points in a regular-season game. The teams combined for seven goals in the second period.
On Feb. 2 in Denver, the Canucks won 5-1. Jake Virtanen and Antoine Roussel each had a goal and an assist. Brock Boeser, Nikolay Goldobin and Tyler Motte also scored for the Canucks. Jacob Markstrom had 34 saves. Matt Calvert scored for Colorado, and Semyon Varlamov stopped 21 shots.
Why Bet on Vancouver?
The Canucks snapped a three-game skid on Monday, knocking off Anaheim 4-0. Jacob Markstrom made 29 saves to earn his first shutout of the season on Monday night. The shutout was the third of Markstrom’s career. His previous one came against Dallas on Feb. 11, 2018. Canucks coach Travis Green didn’t realize his starting netminder hadn’t posted a shutout yet this season.
Markstrom was busiest in the first period, stopping all 14 shots he faced and allowed the Canucks to enter the first intermission with a 2-0 lead. The 29-year old remained impressive throughout the night, earning his 23rd win, tying his season-high in wins. His record and stats improve to 23-18-7, 2.73 GAA and .912 save percentage.
Bo Horvat scored the final two goals Monday. Horvat’s first goal of the night was scored with the man advantage, while his third-period goal was at even strength. The 23-year old is now up to 23 goals, marking a career high and 48 points in 2018-19. Horvat is just four points shy of tying his highest single-season point-total.
Rookie sensation Elias Pettersson registered a pair of assists. He helped set up goals by Nikolay Goldobin (1-0) and Horvat (3-0). The 20-year-old has now collected 14 points in 14 games since returning from a knee injury. Pettersson has 26 goals and 56 points in 52 games this season. Ryan Spooner got his first point with the Canucks, assisting on Alex Biega’s goal. Vancouver acquired the 27-year-old forward in a trade with the Edmonton Oilers this month.
Team Stats
Offense- Goals: 2.79
- Shots: 29.49
- PP/PK Percentage: 15.58
Defense
- Goals: 3.10
- Shots: 31.00
- PP/PK Percentage: 19.70
Why Bet on Colorado?
Colorado had a four-game winning streak and in a 4-3 overtime home loss to Florida on Monday. Aaron Ekblad scored 26 seconds into overtime, Roberto Luongo stopped 36 shots to earn career win No. 485. The win moved Luongo past Ed Belfour for third place on the career list. The winning play was set up when Mike Hoffman sped down the ice after a faceoff, spun past defenseman Samuel Girard and sent a pass over to Ekblad, whose shot slid through the pads of Semyon Varlamov. Florida erased two deficits.
It was a wild Monday for Derick Brassard, who woke up Monday morning as a member of the Panthers only to be traded to the Avalanche. He was acquired along with a conditional sixth-round draft pick from Florida for a 2020 third-round selection. Brassard scored a goal in his Colorado debut.
Brassard put the Avalanche ahead 3-2 at the 7:49 mark of the third period, but his former teammates battled back to steal the victory. He concluded the contest with three shots and logged 13:20 of ice time. Tyson Barrie finished with two assists, his eighth multi-point game of the season. He now has 44 points in 2018-19, ranked 11th among NHL defensemen. Barrie has recorded three points (0g, 3a) in his last two games.
Varlamov allowed four goals on 38 shots. Of the 38 shots that he faced, 21 of those were directed towards him in the second period alone. In the extra period, the Panthers needed just 26 seconds to beat Varlamov and end the game. With the overtime loss, Varlamov sees his record fall to 17-15-9 in 2018-19 along with a 2.80 GAA and a .912 save percentage.
The Avs have averaged 4.6 goals-per-game over their last five contests, outscoring opponents 23-8 over that span. Colorado ranks ninth overall in goals-per-game with 3.32.
Team Stats
Offense- Goals: 3.32
- Shots: 32.70
- PP/PK Percentage: 22.17
Defense
- Goals: 3.17
- Shots: 31.71
- PP/PK Percentage: 22.91
Canucks vs Avalanche NHL Betting Trends
- Underdog is 4-1 in the last 5 meetings
- Under is 3-0-2 in the last 5 meetings in Colorado
- Vancouver is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games on the road
- Vancouver is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games on the road
- The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Vancouver’s last 9 games on the road
- Colorado is 2-7 ATS in its last 9 games at home
- Colorado is 2-7 SU in its last 9 games at home
- The total has gone OVER in 4 of Colorado’s last 6 games at home
Expert NHL Betting Prediction
Vancouver Canucks 3 – Colorado Avalanche 4
