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The number one seed in the West, the Colorado Avalanche, take on the second wild card team, the Nashville Predators for this game one matchup. The Avs come into this series as heavy favorites, as they should be, but these teams have played four games against each other this season and Nashville came away with wins in three of them. Both of these teams are missing some key pieces to their lineup, and we'll get more in-depth on that as it’s time to continue our NHL odds series with a Predators-Avalanche prediction and pick.
Here are the Predators-Avalanche NHL Odds, Courtesy of FanDuel
NHL Odds: Predators-Avalanche Odds
Nashville Predators: +1.5 (+105) (+250 ML)
Colorado Avalanche: -1.5 (-126) (-315 ML)
Over: 6.5 (-128)
Under: 6.5 (+104)
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Why The Predators Can Cover The Spread/Win
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The Nashville Predators have run into a HUGE problem as they get set for their first playoff series this year. Their star goaltender Juuse Saros will not be available to play in game one and game two due to injury. That means they'll rely on backup netminder David Rittich to help get the job done until Saros' return. Rittich hasn't played many games this season, posting a 6-3-4 record with a .886 save percentage while allowing 3.57 goals against per game. The Preds are typically a “defensive first” style of team, who certainly do not want to get into an offensive battle with the Avs, so the key to victory for them would be to tighten up defensively and help Rittich make the saves that they need.
Why The Avalanche Can Cover The Spread/Win
The Colorado Avalanche arguably have the most depth and offensive firepower in the entire league as four of their players finished with over 80 points: Mikko Rantanen, Nathan MacKinnon, Nazem Kadri, and Cale Makar. However, the Avs will likely be missing team captain Gabriel Landeskog for game one as he is still recovering from knee surgery, but that hasn't stopped them from rolling over teams at the end of the regular season. In net for the Avs will be Darcy Kuemper, who was playing fantastically up until the slight slide of losses that the Avs took near the end of April. Kuemper posted a very respectable .921 save percentage on the year while allowing 2.54 goals against per game. He'll look to stand on his head once again and take down the Preds for a win in game one.
Final Predators-Avalanche Prediction & Pick
If the numbers say anything, it's that the Avs are easily the better team in this matchup. However, the thing about the NHL playoffs is that the better team doesn't always win. This is also a matchup between the top two James Norris Trophy canidates: Cale Makar for the Avalanche and Roman Josi for the Predators. It'll be a great series regardless, but the Avs have a lock on this game, especially being at home against a backup goaltender. The issue is finding the value of where to play a bet. The best option right now is just to take the puck line at -1.5 (-126). The odds are still too high for my liking on that pick, but it'll do for now, see how it plans out.
In the series, if Saros can come back for the Predators in game three at home, the fans will be fired up, and the team will have something to write home about. With that said, I bet they can win that game and possibly steal another one somewhere, but I still like the Avs to win this series in six. It'll be a good battle, especially between teams like this who have seen each other quite often, but the Avs are never in doubt to ultimately win this series.
Final Predators-Avalanche Prediction and Pick: Avalanche -1.5 (-126)
