One of the biggest storylines of the 2018-19 NHL season has been the superb play of Vancouver Canucks rookie Elias Pettersson. Will the Calder Trophy favorite return from injury on Wednesday vs. Edmonton Oilers? The game is essentially a pick’em on NHL odds.
Oilers vs Canucks NHL Spread & Expert Prediction
Some roster updates following today’s #Oilers skate as it’s announced waiver addition Cave will make his debut tomorrow in Vancouver while Yamamoto also has a chance to draw in if he’s cleared to be activated from IR. pic.twitter.com/nhFy9gaOIk
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) 15 de enero de 2019
- When: Wednesday, 10 PM ET
- Where: Rogers Arena, Vancouver
- TV: NHL Center Ice
- Live Stream: NHL.tv
- Radio: TuneIn
- NHL Spread: Edmonton Oilers -105 / Vancouver Canucks -105 (Total 6)
Season Series
Canucks lead 2-0. They won 4-2 at home on Dec. 16. Brock Boeser had a goal and set up goals by Alex Edler and Elias Pettersson on power-play goals. Horvat added an empty-net goal for the Canucks. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Alex Chiasson scored for the Oilers. Jacob Markstrom made 20 saves for the Canucks, and Mikko Koskinen stopped 26 shots for the Oilers.The Canucks also won 4-2 on Dec. 27 in Edmonton. Pettersson and Antoine Roussel each had a goal and an assist. The Canucks scored four goals on their first six shots. Tyler Motte and Boeser also scored for Vancouver. Nugent-Hopkins and Leon Draisaitl scored for the Oilers.
Why Bet on Edmonton?
The Oilers come off one of their best games of the season a 7-2 home victory over Buffalo on Monday. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins registered a goal and an assist. His goal gave the Oilers a 2-1 lead just merely three minutes into the game and then he collected the primary assist on Milan Lucic’s second goal of the game in the third period. Both points were registered while at even strength, and the 25-year old now has 15 goals and 42 points in 2018-19.
Zack Kassian scored twice in the win. The Oilers scored three goals in less than two minutes, and Kassian picked up two of those. The 27-year-old has four goals and four assists in 43 games this season. Connor McDavid scored a goal and an assist. McDavid scored on a breakaway early in the second frame to give his team a 4-2 lead at the time. He also helped set up Leon Draisaitl’s power-play tally in the third frame. McDavid has 28 goals and 69 points in 45 games this season. He has at least one point in 10 of his last 11 contests. Lucic scored a pair of goals. The 30-year-old has four goals and 11 points in 46 games.
Mikko Koskinen stopped 41 of 43 shots. He allowed an early first-period goal to Casey Mittelstadt, but his teammates answered quickly and within minutes they held a 3-1 lead. Koskinen did however allow another goal shortly after the Oilers obtained a two-goal lead, but he settled down the remainder of the game, stopping all 14 shots he faced in each the second and third periods. He is now 13-8-1 and he owns a 2.69 GAA, a .915 save percentage and three shutouts this season. Koskinen will start here.
Oilers defenseman Oscar Klefbom (hand) is expected to soon have medical clearance to begin skating and is hopeful he’ll rejoin the team for practices ahead of the all-star break and make his full return after that. Edmonton claimed forward Colby Cave from Boston this week. He had one goal and five points in 20 games with the B’s.
Team Stats
Offense- Goals: 2.89
- Shots: 28.91
- PP/PK Percentage: 21.54
Defense
- Goals: 3.17
- Shots: 31.24
- PP/PK Percentage: 22.30
Why Bet on Vancouver?
The Canucks stopped a three-game skid Sunday with a 5-1 home win over Florida. Loui Eriksson scored a goal and added two assists. Eriksson made a great play to pick off a pass before showing great patience in scoring the opening goal of the game. The goal snapped an eight-game pointless streak for the Swedish winger, bringing him to eight goals and 17 points in 47 games. His assists came on empty-net goals by Brock Boeser and Jay Beagle. Ben Hutton and Markus Granlund also scored in the win.</p.
Jacob Markstrom allowed one goal on 24 shots. He had dropped three straight (0-2-1) while allowing a combined 11 goals in those games. The Swedish netminder improved to 18-12-4 with a 2.83 goals-against-average and a .908 save percentage.
Vancouver rookie star Elias Pettersson missed the game with a knee injury. Pettersson (knee) has not been ruled out yet for Wednesday’s game against Edmonton. Pettersson skated on Tuesday morning and is feeling better. Coach Travis Green said that the rookie forward is listed as day-to-day. Pettersson has been out since Jan. 3 as he suffered an MCL sprain to his right knee vs. Montreal. Prior to his injury, he had 22 goals and 20 assists in 38 games and is the clear Calder Trophy favorite.
The Canucks have had a rollercoaster 2018-19 season. They’re far better than anyone anticipated, though that’s largely because the bar was set so low. The average preseason projection had the Canucks finishing last in the Pacific Division with 78 points. The emergence of Pettersson as more than just a good rookie, but a bonafide superstar, has made the Canucks competitive.
The Canucks are a better team with Pettersson on the ice — they have a +11 goal differential at 5-on-5 when he’s on the ice compared to -20 when he’s not — but there’s a bigger factor that will likely determine whether the Canucks can make the playoffs: goaltending.
Team Stats
Offense- Goals: 2.89
- Shots: 29.11
- PP/PK Percentage: 17.11
Defense
- Goals: 3.15
- Shots: 30.55
- PP/PK Percentage: 21.43
Oilers vs Canucks NHL Betting Trends
- Under is 3-0-2 in the last 5 meetings in Vancouver
- Home team is 6-1 in the last 7 meetings
- Edmonton is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Vancouver
- Edmonton is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing Vancouver
- Vancouver is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games
- Vancouver is 9-2 ATS in its last 11 games at home
Expert NHL Betting Prediction for Oilers vs Canucks
Oilers steal one on road.
