Vancouver Canucks at Colorado Avalanche odds, picks and predictions
The Vancouver Canucks (37-14-6) and Colorado Avalanche (34-18-4) are lined up for a Tuesday night showdown in Denver. Faceoff at Ball Arena is slated for 9 p.m. ET. Below, we analyze BetMGM Sportsbook's lines around the Canucks vs. Avalancheodds, and make our expert NHL picks and predictions.
Vancouver is on the 2nd leg of a 3-games-in-4-days road trip that opened Monday afternoon with a 10-7 defeat at Minnesota. The Canucks, who were -123 favorites, coughed up a mid-2nd quarter 4-1 lead in the loss.
Colorado defeated the Arizona Coyotes 4-3 Sunday as a big -245 home favorite. The Avs hope it's the start of a rebound from a shaky 1-4-1 road trip coming out of the All-Star break Feb. 5-15. Tuesday is Colorado's 2nd of 4 home game in 5 contests between Sunday and Feb. 27. The Aves are 21-5-0 at home this season.
Stream the NHL all season on ESPN+, with your team's out-of-market games, exclusive games, originals and more. Get ESPN+ now!
Canucks at Avalanche odds
BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Thursday at 11:08 p.m. ET.
Canucks at Avalanche projected goalies
Thatcher Demko (30-10-1, 2.45 GAA, .918 SV%) vs. Alexandar Georgiev (29-13-3, 2.94 GAA, .898 SV%)
Demko last played Saturday, yielding 4 goals in a 4-2 home loss to the Winnipeg Jets. The 28-year-old had allowed just 5 goals across his 3 previous efforts (.940 SV%) as the Canucks went 3-0.
Georgiev started Sunday's win against the Coyotes, making 27 saves on 30 shots. Georgiev has logged a .900 SV% or better in 4 straight home starts.
Play our free daily Pick’em Challenge and win! Play now!
Canucks at Avalanche picks and predictions
Prediction
Avalanche 4, Canucks 3
The Avs have won 5 in a row at home. Since Dec. 11, they are 12-1-0 at Ball Arena.
The Canucks are in fade territory, with expected goals-for and goals-against numbers that do not line up with what they've posted in actuality. This month, Vancouver has bloated 5-on-5 shooting percentages, both overall and in high-danger situations. Colorado comes in on the other side of those numbers.
The Avalanche have won 2 in a row against the Canucks. TAKE COLORADO (-150) in this one.
The Avs (-1.5 / +155) are a lean here, but we should look for +170 or better in return. PASS.
The O/U is 2-2-1 across the last 5 meetings in the head-to-head series.
Heading into Monday's action, Colorado (3.70 goals per game) and Vancouver (3.66 GPG) rank 2nd and 3rd in NHL scoring, respectively. That level of scoring is well-represented here. An Over 6.5 would be interesting at -105. PASS on the current offering, though.
