Two clubs that split their season series (two wins apiece) last year, the Arizona Coyotes and the Vancouver Canucks face off at Rogers Arena. This Pacific Division matchup will get going at 10 p.m. ET on Thursday, January 10, and it is being televised live on Sportsnet Pacific.
Arizona Coyotes vs. Vancouver Canucks Odds
Vancouver comes into the matchup as the favorite with a -125 moneyline. The line for Arizona is standing at +105, and the oddsmakers have set the Over/Under (O/U) at 6 goals. The line for betting that total stands at -115 money on the over and -105 on the under.
Netting 5.3 units for moneyline bettors, the Canucks are 20-25 straight up (SU) overall thus far. That early-season winning percentage is a welcome improvement over the 31-51 record from last year’s regular season campaign. 22 of its 45 matches have gone under the total, while 20 have gone over and just three have pushed. This season, the team is 9-10 SU at home.
Vancouver’s converted on 17.6 percent of its power play chances this season, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 23rd overall, and it’s successfully killed off 78.0 percent of all penalties.
Vancouver, as a collective unit, has been penalized 3.8 times per game overall this season, 3.2 per game over its past five outings total, and 3.8 per game over its last five at home. The team has been forced to defend opponent power plays for 8.5 minutes per game over its last 10 outings, in total.
With a .908 save percentage and 28.5 saves per game, Jacob Markstrom (17 wins, 15 losses, and three OT losses) has been the top goalkeeper for the Canucks this season. If head coach Travis Green decides to give him the evening off, however, the Nucks might go with Anders Nilsson (3-9-9 record, .895 save percentage, 3.09 goals against average).
The Nucks will continue to rely on leadership from Elias Pettersson and Bo Horvat. Pettersson (42 points) has tallied 22 goals and 20 assists and has recorded two or more points 10 times this year. Horvat has 17 goals and 19 assists to his credit and has notched a point in 26 games.
Arizona has lost 2.6 units for moneyline bettors this year and is currently 18-24 straight up (SU). Through 42 regular season outings, 22 of its games have gone under the total, while 19 have gone over and just one has pushed. Arizona’s 10-10 SU as a road team this season.
Arizona has converted on 16.8 percent of its power play opportunities this year, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked first overall and it’s successfully killed off 88.4 percent of all penalties.
Arizona’s players have been whistled for penalties 3.8 times per game in total this season, and 5.8 per game over their last five on the road. The team has had to defend opponent power plays just 8.3 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Darcy Kuemper (2.69 goals against average and .914 save percentage) has been the primary option in goal for Arizona. Kuemper is averaging 28.1 saves per game and owns a 6-14-3 record.
For the visiting Coyotes, the offense will be heavily coordinated by Clayton Keller (nine goals, 21 assists) and Nick Schmaltz (seven goals, 18 assists).
Arizona Coyotes at Vancouver Canucks Betting Picks
Free NHL Pick: SU Winner – Canucks, O/U – Over
Betting Notes
- The total has gone under in four of Vancouver’s last five outings.
- Arizona has managed 28.0 shot attempts per game over its last five road games while Vancouver is averaging 32.2 shots per game over its last five at home.
- Power plays and penalty kills could prove to be critical in this matchup. The Coyotes are 5-14 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 6-19 in games where they serve fewer than 10 penalty minutes, in total. The Canucks are 6-12 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 12-15 when total penalty minutes are in the single digits.
- Arizona is 2-1 in games decided by a shootout this season while Vancouver is 1-2 in shootouts.
- Vancouver is ranked 27th with 6.1 takeaways per game. That figure’s trended down lately, however, as the team has managed 5.3 takeaways over its last 10 games and 5.0 takeaways over its last five.
- Arizona has averaged 9.0 takeaways per game over its last five road games, an improvement over its season average of 6.4 takeaways per game (ranked 25th in the league).
