In their third and final head-to-head meeting of the regular season, the Vancouver Canucks and the Colorado Avalanche collide at the Pepsi Center for a Western Conference matchup. The match will get started at 9 p.m. ET on Monday, February 26 and it’s being shown live on Sportsnet Pacific.
Vancouver Canucks at Colorado Avalanche Odds
Colorado (-175) is currently the favorite over Vancouver (+155) and the oddsmakers have put the Over/Under (O/U) at an even 6 goals. The odds for betting the total stand at -110 for the over and -110 for the under.
Colorado is 32-29 straight up (SU) and has earned moneyline bettors 7.7 units this year. That early-season winning percentage is a remarkable improvement over the 22-60 record from last year’s regular season campaign. Of the team’s 61 games this season, 32 have gone over the total, while 25 have gone under and just four have pushed. The team is 20-9 SU at home this season.
The Avalanche have converted on 20.1 percent of their power play chances this season, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, their penalty kill is ranked seventh overall, and they’ve successfully killed off 82.5 percent of all penalties.
As a team, the Avalanche have been penalized 4.1 times per game overall this season, and 3.0 per game over their last five outings at home. The team’s had to defend opponent power plays for 8.6 minutes per game over their last 10 outings, overall.
Boasting a .911 save percentage and 28.2 saves per game, Semyon Varlamov (16-19-3) has been the top option in goal for the Avs this year. If the Avs choose to rest him, however, Colorado could turn to Jonathan Bernier (17-13-13 record, .914 save percentage, 2.82 goals against average).
Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen will both spearhead the attack for the Avalanche. MacKinnon (66 points) has tallied 26 goals and 40 assists and has recorded multiple points in 19 different games this year. Rantanen has 19 goals and 37 assists to his credit and has recorded at least one point in 36 games.
On the other side of the ice, Vancouver is 24-38 straight up (SU) and has lost 7.8 units for moneyline bettors thus far. A total of 36 of its matches have gone over the total, while 25 have gone under and none have pushed. The Canucks are 13-19 SU as the road team this season.
The Canucks have scored on 21.4 percent of their power play opportunities this year, a figure that places it in the top-10 among NHL teams. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 26th overall and it’s successfully killed off 76.7 percent of all penalties.
Vancouver’s players have been called for penalties 3.9 times per game in total this season, and 4.6 per game over their last five match ups. The team’s been forced to defend opponent power plays 8.6 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Jacob Markstrom (2.72 goals against average and .910 save percentage) has been the main option in goal for Vancouver. Markstrom is averaging 26.2 saves per game and has 17 wins, 28 losses, and five OT losses to his credit.
Leading the offensive attack for the visiting Canucks will be Brock Boeser, who’s got 27 goals and 25 assists this season.
Vancouver Canucks vs. Colorado Avalanche Betting Predictions
Pick: SU Winner – Avalanche, O/U – Under
Betting Trends
- Over Colorado’s last ten outings, seven of them have been decided by two or more goals (the team is 2-5 in those games).
- The Avalanche are 10-14 SU in games where they serve more penalty minutes than their opponent while the Canucks are 12-16 SU when they serve more minutes than the opposition.
- Vancouver is 0-3 in games decided by a shootout this season while Colorado is 1-1 in shootouts.
- The over has hit in four of Vancouver’s last five games.
- Colorado has averaged 3.6 giveaways over its last five home games, an improvement from its season average of 6.5 giveaways per game (the 5th-fewest in the NHL).
- Vancouver is ranked eighth this season with 8.2 giveaways per game. That figure has trended lower recently, however, as the team’s averaged 5.5 giveaways over its last 10 games and 5.0 giveaways over its last five.
