We have a small slate of games tonight in the NHL but, they feature some incredible matchups. The Minnesota Wild take on the Winnipeg Jets in a Central Division clash. Florida travels to Carolina to take on the Hurricanes, Anaheim takes on Tyler Toffoli and the surging Flames and then our marquee game of the night. The Colorado Avalanche against the Vegas Golden Knights with Jack Eichel making his debut for the squad. It should be a great night of hockey so let’s get into it and find some winners.
Colorado Avalanche @ Vegas Golden Knights
- Time: 10:00 PM ET
- TV Coverage: TNT
- Colorado Avalanche: 34-9-4, 1st Central (13-6-2 Away)
- Vegas Golden Knights: 28-17-3, 2nd Pacific (14-10-2 Home)
| Team | Opening ML | Current ML | Spread | Total |
| Colorado Avalanche | -115 | -140 | -1.5 (+190) | o6.5 (-125) |
| Vegas Golden Knights | -105 | +120 | +1.5 (-235) | u6.5 (+105) |
Trends:
- Under is 5-0 in Avalanche last 5 overall.
- Avalanche are 5-0 in their last 5 road games.
- Over is 4-0 in Golden Knights last 4 home games.
Preview:
Colorado Avalanche
The Avalanche are coming off a 4-1 loss against the Dallas Stars last night where Jake Oettinger had one of his best performances of the season finishing with a +3.7 GSAx. Colorado had 4.7 xG’s compared to Dallas’ 3.98. This was a tough spot for them as they had just beaten Dallas two nights prior 4-0. Even with that loss Colorado is 8-1-1 in their last 10 and remain one of the hottest teams in the NHL. The Avalanche are 4-0-1 on no days rest and 2-0 after a loss, so something to note.
On the year Colorado is 2nd in term of Goals For per game averaging 4.00. However, in their last 10 they haven’t been as good only averaging 3.30. They only average 0.10 Goals For lower on the road so that’s not a major concern in this matchup. In addition to goals, the Avalanche have been generating less shots on goal in their last 10 averaging 30.60 which is roughly 5 shots less per game than their season average. Colorado’s Power Play ranks 10th converting at a rate of 23.8%. Nathan MacKinnon returned from his concussion a few games ago and has tallied a point in each of his games back.
Defensively, Colorado has been much better in their last 10 averaging 1.90 Goals Against per game compared to their season average of 2.85. They’re giving up an average of 30.6 Shots on Goal Against which ranks 11th. Surprisingly, in their last 10 that number hasn’t really changed at all, it’s mainly due to their goaltending. Colorado’s Penalty Kill continues to struggle ranking 22nd. That being said, they have been much better as of late with the only outlier coming in their most recent game against the Stars.
With Pavel Francouz starting last night, Darcy Kuemper will get the nod in net tonight for the Av’s. He’s been their main starter all season and has a +12.9 GSAx on the year. In his last five starts he’s allowed 0-2-2-1-3 goals against.
Vegas Golden Knights
The Golden Knights are coming off a massive layoff with their last game taking place on February 9th. They lost 6-0 to the Flames in that matchup and will look to rebound here tonight. They faced the Avalanche earlier this season defeating them 3-1.
Offensively, the Vegas Golden Knights are averaging 3.29 Goals For Per game which ranks 10th. However in their last 10 games, that number has dropped significantly and are only averaging 2.60 Goals For per game. They rank 8th in terms of Shots on Goal but have been below that number in recent games. Their Power Play ranks 19th but have only scored one goal on the man advantage in their last 7 games (17 attempts). As previously mentioned Jack Eichel is poised to make his debut for the team and is expected to be on a line with Max Pacioretty and Evgenii Dadonov. With Jack Eichel returning to the ice, the Golden Knights had to place Mark Stone on long term IR to fit under the salary cap requirements.
Vegas ranks 19th in Goals Against per game allowing an average of 2.96. In their last 10 games, they’ve been around the same number so it’s not really note worthy. They’ve done a great job of limiting opponents shots against and will need to do it again tonight. Their Penalty Kill ranks 17th in the NHL and will be in for a test against the Av’s. The Golden Knights will be without Zach Whitecloud and Alec Martinez who remain on IR.
Laurent Brossoit is expected to be the starter for the Golden Knights tonight with Robin Lehner out. Brossoit has been good this year with a +4.2 GSAx. His last start was against Calgary on February 8th where he recorded a shutout.
Pick:
- COLORADO AVALANCHE ml (-132) – FANDUEL
- I’m going to stay away from the total in this matchup based off the offensive inconsistency both teams are having as of late. The Avalanche have shown that they can rebound quickly and rarely lose two games in a row. They face Vegas’ backup goalie in Brossoit, who’s not bad by the way, and a depleted defensive unit. Kuemper will be back in net tonight and I think the Av’s rally here to set the tone for a team they’ll likely face in the playoffs.
Other Plays on the Night:
- CALGARY FLAMES/ ANAHEIM DUCKS OVER 5.5 (-114) – FANDUEL
Best of luck, and as always you can find me on Twitter @GatorBetting and Instagram @Gator_Sports_Betting.
