It is a Central Division battle as the Colorado Avalanche face the St. Louis Blues. It is time to continue our NHL odds series with an Avalanche-Blues prediction, pick, and how-to-watch.
The Avalanche come into the game sitting at 43-20-5 on the year, which is tied for first in the Central Division. They have won eight of their last nine games and won six straight overall. Last time out, it was a win over the Edmonton Oilers. After a scoreless first period, the Avalanche scored in the second with a goal from Sean Walker. In the third, the Oilers would score twice, but with just under five minutes left, Walker scored his second of the game to tie the game up. In overtime, it was Artturi Lehkonen scored to give the Avalanche the win.
Meanwhile, the Blues come into the game sitting at 36-29-3 on the year but have won four straight games. Last time out, the Blues faced the Ducks. Troy Terry scored first to give the Ducks the lead. In the second period, Kevin Hayes tied the game. This would lead to a 1-1 game going into the third. Robert Thomas scored twice on the power play, and Jake Neighbours scored a power-play goal to make it 4-1. Terry would add another goal, but the Blues would come out with a win, 4-2.
Here are the NHL Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
NHL Odds: Avalanche-Blues Odds
Colorado Avalanche: -1.5 (+128)
Moneyline: -192
St. Louis Blues: +1.5 (-154)
Moneyline: +158
Over: 6.5 (+102)
Under: 6.5 (-124 )
How to Watch Avalanche vs. Blues
Time: 8:00 PM ET/ 5:00 PM PT
TV: NHLPP/ESPN+
Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why The Avalanche Will Cover The Spread/Win
The Avalanche are first in the NHL this year in goals per game, with 3.71 goals per game. Nathan MacKinnon leads the team this year. MacKinnon has the most goals, assists, and points on the Avalanche. He comes into the game with 42 goals and 74 assists, good for 116 total points. Further, he has been amazing on the power play, with ten goals and 32 assists when on the man-advantage. Second on the team in goals and points is Mikko Rantanen. He comes into the game with 34 goals on the year, plus 56 assists, giving him a total of 90 points. Further, he has also been great on the power play, with 12 goals and 25 assists on the power play this year.
The power play is also somewhere Valeri Nichushkin has thrived. He has 25 total goals and 22 assists, with 15 of the goals and four of the assists when on the power play. Further, the Avalanche get a lot of help on offense from the blue line. Cale Makar is third on the team in points, coming in with 17 goals and 57 assists, good for 74 total points. He has six goals and 26 assists on the power play this year. Devon Toews comes in with 11 goals and 29 assists, good for 40 points from the blue line as well.
The Avalanche's power play ranks seventh in the NHL this year, with a 24.8 percent success rate and 59 total power-play goals on the season. The penalty kill is ninth in the NHL with an 81.4 percent success rate, but 11th in the NHL with seven shorthanded goals.
The Avalanche are expected to send Alexander Georgiev to be in the net for this one. He is 35-15-3 on the year with a 2.83 goals-against average and a .902 save percentage. Further, he is the first in the NHL in wins this year. This month has been interesting for him. Georgiev has 2.35 goals against average and a .919 save percentage. While he is 4-1 on the month, each of the last three wins has come in overtime.
Why The Blues Will Cover The Spread/Win
The Blues sit 26th in the NHL in goals per game this year, sitting with 2.79 goals per contest on the season. Robert Thomas leads the way this year. He comes into the game second on the team in goals while leading assists and points this year. On the season, Thomas has 23 goals and 50 assists, good for 73 points. Leading the team in goals and second in points is Pavel Buchnevich. He comes in with 24 goals and 28 assists, good for 52 total points this year. Further, he has seven goals and seven assists on the power play. Jordan Kyrou rounds out the top-scoring options in terms of total points. He comes in with 21 goals and 29 assists this year, good for 50 total points.
There are still other major goal-scoring options on the team. Brandon Saad comes in with 20 goals this year while having 12 assists, good for a total of 32 points. Meanwhile, Jake Neighbours comes in with 22 goals and nine assists good for 31 total points. Neighbors also lead the way in power-play goals this year. He has eight power-play goals while having five assists.
The Blues are 25th in the NHL this year on the power play. They have converted 18.1 percent of their power play chances this year. The Blues are 18th in the NHL on the penalty kill this year, sitting with a 79.1 percent success rate when a man is down this year.
Jordan Binnington is expected to be in goal for the Blues in this one. He is 24-18-3 on the year with a 2.80 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage. While he is tied for the ninth in wins in the NHL, he is 22nd in goals against average this year. This month he has been solid, with a 1.96 goals-against average and a .940 save percentage.
Final Avalanche-Blues Prediction & Pick
While Jordan Bennington has been solid for the Blues, he has had a bad game as of late. That was against the New York Rangers. The Rangers are a team with a great offense, who gets solid goaltending, and can beat you with both the power play and in transition. The Avalanche are a team with a great offense, who also gets solid goaltending, and can beat you with the power play and transition. The prediction for this Avalanche-Blues game is a very similar game to the Blue with the Rangers. With that, take the Avalanche in this one.
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Final Avalanche-Blues Prediction & Pick: Avalanche -1.5 (+128)
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