Two of the most-penalized teams in the NHL, the Vancouver Canucks and the Colorado Avalanche meet at the Pepsi Center. CBC Sports will air this Western Conference matchup, which gets going at 10 p.m. ET on Saturday, February 2.
Vancouver Canucks at Colorado Avalanche Odds
Vancouver is 23-28 straight up (SU) and has earned moneyline bettors 4.6 units this season. 24 of its matches have gone under the total, while 23 have gone over and just four have pushed. This 2018-19 Canucks team is 11-15 SU on the road.
Vancouver has converted on 16.8 percent of its power play opportunities this season, a mark that’s right around league average. Its penalty kill is ranked 21st in the league, and the team’s successfully killed off 79.2 percent of its penalties.
Vancouver, as a collective unit, has been sent to the penalty box 3.8 times per game in the 2018-19 season, and 3.2 per game over its last five road outings. The team’s had to kill penalties an unhealthy 14.6 minutes per game over their last five outings.
Boasting a .908 save percentage and 28.2 saves per game, Jacob Markstrom (19-18-5) has been the top option in goal for Vancouver this season. If Vancouver decides to rest him, however, head coach Travis Green may turn to Anders Nilsson (3-9-1 record, .895 save percentage, 3.09 goals against average).
Elias Pettersson and Bo Horvat will both lead the offensive attack for the visiting Canucks. Pettersson (45 points) is up to 23 goals and 22 assists, and has recorded two or more points in 11 different games. Horvat has 18 goals and 23 assists to his creditand has registered a point in 29 games.
On the other side of the rink, Colorado is 22-28 straight up (SU) and has lost 12.6 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 50 regular season contests, 27 of its games have gone over the total, while 22 have gone under and just one has pushed. The team is 10-13 SU at home this season.
Colorado has converted on 25.1 percent of its power play chances this season, a mark that’s good enough for fifth-best in the league. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 28th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 76.8 percent of all penalties.
The Avalanche have been penalized 4.1 times per game this season, and 5.0 per game over their last five home outings. The team’s had to kill penalties 15.4 minutes per contest over their last five home games.
Semyon Varlamov (26.7 saves per game) has been the top option in goal for Colorado. Varlamov has 13 wins, 18 losses, and five OT losses to his credit and has recorded a poor .908 save percentage and 2.82 goals against average this year.
The home team will be led on offense by Mikko Rantanen (23 goals, 51 assists).
Vancouver Canucks vs. Colorado Avalanche Free Picks
NHL Tip: SU Winner – Avalanche, O/U – Under
Betting Trends
- For both of these clubs, the game went over the total in three of their past five matchups.
- Vancouver has managed 31.6 shot attempts per game over its last five road games while Colorado is averaging 36.0 shots per game over its last five home outings.
- Power plays and penalty kills could prove to be key in this game. The Canucks are 7-13 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 14-17 when they’re in the penalty box for fewer than 10 minutes, total. The Avalanche are 9-13 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 13-16 when they’re in the box for less than 10 minutes.
- Colorado skaters have created 5.8 takeaways per game over its last five home games, a slight drop from its season average of 5.3 takeaways per game (ranked 31st).
- Vancouver is ranked 28th in the league with 6.1 takeaways per game. That figure has trended lower recently, however, as it has created 5.3 takeaways over its last 10 games and 5.0 takeaways over its last five.
