Elias Pettersson, Bo Horvat, and the Vancouver Canucks will face off against Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, and the Chicago Blackhawks at the United Center in a Western Conference showdown. The action will get started at 8:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, February 7, and fans at home can catch the game live on Sportsnet Pacific.
Vancouver Canucks vs. Chicago Blackhawks Odds
Vancouver (+130) is playing the role of underdog to Chicago (-150), and the Over/Under (O/U) has been placed at 7 goals (-105 for the over, -115 for the under).
Vancouver is 24-30 straight up (SU) and has earned 4.2 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 54 regular season outings, 27 of its games have gone under the total, while 23 have gone over and just four have pushed. As the road team in 2018-19, the Nucks are 12-17 SU.
Vancouver has converted on just 16.7 percent of its power play chances this season, a mark that places them in the bottom-10 overall among NHL teams. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 19th overall, and the team’s successfully killed off 79.4 percent of its penalties..
Boasting a .910 save percentage and 28.4 saves per game, Jacob Markstrom (20-20-5) has been the primary option in goal for Vancouver this year. If it chooses to give him a rest, however, head coach Travis Green could turn to Anders Nilsson (3-9-1), who has a .895 save percentage and 3.09 goals against average this year.
On the other side of the rink, Chicago is 21-33 straight up (SU) and has lost 5.9 units for moneyline bettors thus far. Through 54 regular season matches, 33 of its games have gone over the total, while 18 have gone under and just three have pushed. It’s 10-16 SU at home this season.
The Blackhawks have converted on just 21.1 percent of their power play chances this season, a mark that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 32nd overall, and it’s successfully killed off 73.2 percent of all penalties.
Cam Ward has denied 29.3 shots per game as the top netminder in the crease for the Blackhawks. Ward has 10 wins, 13 losses, and four overtime losses and has recorded a mediocre 3.75 goals against average and a poor .891 save percentage this year.
Vancouver Canucks at Chicago Blackhawks Free Picks
NHL Tip: SU Winner – Canucks, O/U – Under
Betting Notes
- Four of Chicago’s last ten contests have been decided by two or more goals. The club is 3-1 overall in those games.
- Power-play chances may be key tonight. The Canucks are 7-14 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 15-19 in games where they’re in the penalty box for fewer than 10 minutes, in total. The Blackhawks are 7-14 when the team serves fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 15-25 in games where they’re in the box for less than 10 minutes.
- Vancouver is 1-3 in games decided by a shootout this season while Chicago is 1-1 in shootouts.
- For both of these clubs, the total has gone over in four of their last five outings.
- Vancouver skaters have averaged 7.8 giveaways over its last five home games, its season average of 7.4 giveaways per game (the fifth-fewest in the NHL).
- Chicago skaters have averaged 9.6 giveaways over its last five home games, a rise over its season average of 8.8 giveaways per game (ranked 9th in the NHL).
