In their final head-to-head meeting of the regular season, the New Jersey Devils and the Colorado Avalanche face off at the Pepsi Center. Altitude Sports & Entertainment will broadcast this East-West matchup, which gets underway at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, March 17.
New Jersey Devils at Colorado Avalanche Odds
Oddsmakers have not yet posted moneyline or Over/Under odds for this matchup.
The Avalanche are 30-41 straight-up (SU) and have not been kind to moneyline bettors (to the tune of -19.1 units) thus far. That early-season winning percentage is a big slide from what the team managed during last year’s regular season (43-39). Of its 71 games this season, 37 have gone over the total, while 33 have gone under and just one has pushed. The team’s 15-20 SU at home this year.
Colorado’s connected on 22.5 percent of its power play opportunities this season, a figure that’s good enough for seventh-best in the league. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 28th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 77.2 percent of all penalties.
As a team, Colorado has been penalized 4.1 times per game overall this season, and 2.2 per game over its last five games. The team has had to defend opposition power plays for just 7.9 minutes per game over its last 10 outings, in total.
Averaging 27.8 saves per game with a .910 save percentage, Semyon Varlamov (19-28-9) has been the primary goalkeeper for the Avalanche this year. If they decide to give him a rest, however, Colorado might go with Philipp Grubauer (11-17-17 record, .901 save percentage, 3.02 goals against average).
The Avs will continue seeking offensive production from Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen. MacKinnon (89 points) has produced 36 goals and 53 assists and has recorded multiple points in 25 different games this year. Rantanen has 31 goals and 56 assists to his credit and has notched a point in 50 contests.
On the other side of the rink, New Jersey is 27-45 straight up (SU) and has lost 14.2 units for moneyline bettors thus far. 37 of its outings have gone over the total, while 32 have gone under the total and just three have pushed. New Jersey’s 10-27 SU as an away team this season.
New Jersey has converted on 17.9 percent of its power play opportunities this season, a mark that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked fifth overall and it’s successfully killed off 83.8 percent of all opponent power plays.
New Jersey’s players have been whistled for penalties 3.9 times per game this season, and 4.8 per game over their last five on the road. The team has had to kill penalties 10.2 minutes per game over their last five road outings.
Keith Kinkaid (.891 save percentage and 3.36 goals against average) has been the primary option in goal for New Jersey. Kinkaid is averaging 25.8 saves per game and owns a 16-25-6 record.
Kyle Palmieri (27 goals, 23 assists) will pace the attack for the visiting Devils.
New Jersey Devils at Colorado Avalanche Betting Predictions
Prediction: SU Winner – Avalanche, O/U – Under
Betting Trends
- New Jersey has managed 28.6 shot attempts per game over its last five road games while Colorado is averaging 40.8 shots per game over its last five at home.
- Penalties and power plays could have a key role in this game. The Devils are 11-14 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 13-30 in games where they serve fewer than 10 penalty minutes, in total. The Avalanche are 11-18 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 17-24 when they’re in the box for less than 10 minutes.
- Two of New Jersey’s past 10 contests have ended in a shootout. The team’s 1-1 in those games and 2-4 overall in shootouts this season.
- Colorado is ranked 27th in the league this season with 6.4 takeaways per game. That figure’s trended upward lately, as it has forced 8.4 takeaways over its last 10 games and 8.0 takeaways over its last five.
- New Jersey has averaged 6.6 takeaways per game over its last five road games, a drop-off from its season average of 7.8 takeaways per game (ranked 13th overall).
