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The Colorado Avalanche will open their season with the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday at the T-Mobile Arena. We're live from Sin City as we share our NHL odds series and make an Avalanche-Golden Knights prediction and pick.
The Avalanche went 50-25-7 last season and had a good run after beating the Winnipeg Jets in the first round. Then, they fell to the Dallas Stars, ending their season in disappointment. Colorado looks to start the season strong on the road in Vegas.
The Golden Knights went 45-29-8 last season to make the playoffs. Unfortunately, they fell short in the playoffs, losing 4-3 to the Dallas Stars in the first round.
Here are the Avalanche-Golden Knights NHL odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
NHL Odds: Avalanche-Golden Knights NHL Odds
Colorado Avalanche: +1.5 (-275)
Moneyline: -110
Vegas Golden Knights: -1.5 (+220)
Moneyline: -110
Over: 6.5 (+100)
Under: 6.5 (-120)
How To Watch Avalanche vs Golden Knights
Time: 10 PM ET/7 PM PT
TV: ESPN+
Stream: fuboTV (Free Trial)
Why the Avalanche Could Cover the Spread/Win
The Avalanche are elite and one of the best teams in the league, with a great chance of winning their second Stanley Cup title in four seasons. Significantly, they have some of the best players in the world, including one who can challenge Connor McDavid in points.
Nathan MacKinnon exploded last season with 51 goals and 89 assists. Amazingly, it was his first time scoring 50 goals, and it helped him win the Hart Trophy. Mikko Rantanen also thrived with 42 goals and 62 assists. Also, Jonathan Drouin had a productive season on the third line, tallying 19 goals and 37 assists. The Avs may need supplementary scoring in the absence of Gabriel Landeskog and Valeri Nischushkin. Ultimately, the Avs would like to follow up another successful season after averaging 3.68 goals (first) and shooting 24.9 percent on the powerplay (5th).
Alexandar Georgiev was inconsistent last season, going 38-18-5 with a 3.02 goals-against average and a save percentage of .897. Ultimately, he needs his defense to step up. Cale Makar is exceptional on both sides of the ice, scoring 21 goals and 69 assists while blocking 148 shots and delivering 37 hits. Meanwhile, Devon Toews continues to evolve and scored 12 goals and 38 assists with 74 hits and 110 blocked shots. Samuel Girard tallied three goals and 15 assists while delivering 76 hits and blocked 99 shots. Additionally, Josh Manson was a force on defense, with 211 hits and 109 blocked shots.
The Avalanche will cover the spread if their offense can explode early. Then, they need their defense to cover the lanes and not allow scoring chances.
Why the Golden Knights Could Cover the Spread/Win
After losing Jonathan Marchessault to free agency, the Golden Knights look slightly weaker on offense. They must replace his scoring, and someone else must step up.
Jack Eichel is their best player and must stay healthy in this game and beyond. Ultimately, he scored 31 goals and 37 assists last season while also missing some time. Mark Stone has also had some injuries. Substantially, he netted 16 goals and 37 assists through 56 games. Ivan Barbashev can be that next piece after scoring 19 goals and 26 assists. Additionally, Tomas Hertl may try to step up after scoring 17 goals and 21 assists through 54 games. Victor Olofsson must do more after scoring seven goals and eight assists through 51 games for the Buffalo Sabres. Also, there is William Karlsson, who tallied 30 goals and 30 assists through 70 games, most spent on the third line. The offense averaged 3.21 goals per game (14th) and shot 20.2 percent from the power play (20th).
Adin Hill is the established full-time starter and went 19-12-2 last season with a 2.71 goals-against average and a save percentage of .909. However, his aging defense must do more. Alex Pietrangelo blocked 160 shots and delivered 46 hits, while Shea Theodore had nine hits and 78 blocked shots through limited time. Meanwhile, Noah Hanifin had 63 hits and blocked 121 shots. This defense allowed an average of 2.06 goals per game (12th) while killing 79.3 percent of the penalties (16th).
The Golden Knights will cover the spread if they can set up scoring chances and convert on their chances on the extra-man attack. Additionally, the Knights must close lanes and block shots in front of Hill.
Final Avalanche-Golden Knights Prediction & Pick
The Avalanche are 5-4-1 in the past 10 games between the teams, while the Knights are 5-5. Also, the under is 7-3 in the past 10 games between the teams. The Avs have averaged 2.3 goals per game, while the Knights have averaged 2.7 in the past 10 between the teams. Despite explosive offenses, both teams tend to shut down when playing one another. But that was not the trend last season when the Knights beat the Avalanche 4-3 and 7-0 at home.
Losing one of their best players may hurt the Knights. Who else is going to provide the scoring? We may get the answer to that question in this game as the Knights look to replace the scoring loss. Consequently, it may affect the outcome in this one as the Avalanche finds a way to stay in it. Colorado covers the spread.
Final Avalanche-Golden Knights Prediction & Pick: Colorado Avalanche +1.5 (-275)
