Vegas could do neighboring Arizona a huge favor on Thursday night: Let the Coyotes win. After all, the Golden Knights are locked into their playoff seeding, while Arizona is trying to claim the final wild-card spot in the West. Vegas will be favored on the NHL betting odds.

How to Bet Coyotes vs Golden Knights NHL Betting Lines & Game Info

Nobody has come up bigger than the captain.

The @GanemJewelers “Player of the Month” for March is @OEL23. pic.twitter.com/d07jAwhqOY — Arizona Coyotes (@ArizonaCoyotes) 3 de abril de 2019

• When: Thursday, 10 PM ET
• Where: T-Mobile Arena
• TV: NHL Center Ice
• Live Stream: NHL.tv
• NHL Betting Lines: Vegas Golden Knights -210 (Total 5.5)

How to Bet Jets vs Avalanche NHL Spread & Expert Pick

Season Series

Vegas leads 2-1, but the Coyotes won the last meeting 5-2 in Sin City on Feb. 12. Nick Cousins scored his first game-winning goal of the season and goaltender Darcy Kuemper made 41 saves. Arizona, which improved to 2-1-1 in Las Vegas all-time, was the recipient of a wild bounce after Cousins’ initial shot was deflected wide.

Vinnie Hinostroza collected the puck and fired it in front, where Cousins was there for a one-timer that slipped past Vegas goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury. Jordan Oesterle, Alex Galchenyuk, Josh Archibald and Richard Panik also scored for Arizona. Brandon Pirri and Nate Schmidt scored for Vegas.

Why Bet on Arizona?

The Coyotes would be eliminated from playoff contention on Thursday with a loss OR if the Avalanche gets just one point in their game Thursday vs. Winnipeg. Arizona is four back of the Avs and both have two games left including Thursday. The Coyotes (38-34-8) need to win their final two games and have Colorado lose its last two in order to have a chance to get in.

Arizona has lost seven of it’s past nine and comes off a 3-1 home defeat to the bad Los Angeles Kings. Jack Campbell made a career-high 49 saves and Trevor Lewis scored 3:29 into the third period to break a 1-1 tie. Drew Doughty added an empty-netter with 44.4 seconds left.

Darcy Kuemper made 16 saves before he was accidentally struck in the eye. Trevor Lewis was driving to the net and he flicked one past Kuemper with defenseman Kevin Connauton on his back. He inadvertently had his stick go into the face mask of Kuemper and he reportedly suffered an eye injury.

“It looked bad but I think he’s going to be OK,” head coach Rick Tocchet said. “He said he feels OK.” Kuemper, who has played a key role in Arizona’s push for a wild card, was replaced by Calvin Pickard. It is unclear whether Kuemper is expected to start on Thursday in Vegas.

Brad Richardson scored for Arizona and Vinnie Hinostroza registered an assist. Hinostroza is on a three-game point streak. He has 16 goals and 38 points in 70 contests this season.

The Coyotes have struggled to produce offense all season, and even more of late. The Coyotes have scored just 12 goals in their past eight games and have gone 2-4-2 over that span. The power play has punctuated these issues. After a nonexistent showing on Tuesday, the Coyotes’ man-advantage has produced just one goal in its last 22 opportunities.

Team Stats

• Goals: 2.59
• Shots: 30.67
• PP/PK Percentage: 16.08

Defense

• Goals: 2.72
• Shots: 30.65
• PP/PK Percentage: 14.80

Why Bet on Vegas?

With third place in the Pacific Division and a first-round playoff date with San Jose already locked up, Vegas ended a five-game losing streak on Monday with a 3-1 win over Edmonton. The Golden Knights won the season series 3-1, outscoring Edmonton 15-9. The Oilers started the game with their playoff hopes intact but were eliminated from contention midway through the first period when Colorado earned a point in a shootout loss at St. Louis.

Jonathan Marchessault scored the game-winning goal Monday. The 28-year old scored 51 seconds into the middle frame, which turned out to be the eventual winner, giving him six of the sort this campaign. This marks the third consecutive season in which he has tallied six game-winning goals. It was also Marchessault’s 25th goal and he has now amassed 58 points in 2018-19.

Pierre-Edouard Bellemare scored a short-handed, empty-net goal. It was Bellemare’s first goal since Feb. 22. He has six goals and 15 points in 74 games this season.

Malcolm Subban stopped 18 shots, only beat by a deflected Connor McDavid shot. With the solid effort, his record improves to 8-10-2 this season and owns a 2.93 GAA and .902 save percentage. It was Subban’s ninth straight start in place of an injured Marc-Andre Fleury. Subban ended an 0-3-2 skid since earning his first career shutout on March 21 and has a 2.67 goals-against average during the nine-game span.

Team Stats

• Goals: 2.76
• Shots: 29.08
• PP/PK Percentage: 19.11

Defense

• Goals: 2.76
• Shots: 29.08
• PP/PK Percentage: 19.11

Coyotes vs Golden Knights NHL Betting Trends

• Under is 6-0 in Coyotes last 6 overall
• Road team is 4-0 in the last 4 meetings
• Coyotes are 2-6 in the last 8 meetings
• Favorite is 5-2 in the last 7 meetings

Expert Final Score Prediction for Coyotes vs Golden Knights

Arizona Coyotes 2 – Vegas Golden Knights 3