Should You Wager that Edmonton Stays Hot Against Colorado?
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The NHL schedule has just four games on it this Friday night. There is that one gem in Edmonton, though, between the Colorado Avalanche and Edmonton Oilers.
Now, this shorter slate keeps things tidy and gives good NHL betting opportunities.
Edmonton Oilers Entertain the Colorado Avalanche Friday night
Tonight’s game takes on more importance for the Edmonton Oilers as they face the Colorado Avalanche at home.
Colorado has little to worry about. It is Edmonton that is just two points ahead of the Los Angeles Kings. The good news is that the Oilers do have two games in hand.
This is a game that Edmonton benefits a little because of Colorado’s injuries. Right now, it appears that Devon Toews will be out of the lineup. Toews is out and Mikko Rantanen is questionable with an illness. The thought process is that Colorado could hold Rantanen out for precautionary reasons.
Does a potential addition of Rantanen change things much for Edmonton? Honestly, it does not. Colorado is a formidable foe even with a couple of major cogs out of the lineup.
The Avalanche can step up with their depth. It is why they have clinched the Western Conference top seed.
Edmonton and Colorado opened with an Over of 6.5 and there expects to be no shift in this currently.
Both teams are more than capable of scoring a ton of goals and have top-five power-play units. The danger is that Edmonton is arguably the hotter team. Over the past 20 games, Edmonton is 15-3-2. That includes a most recent 8-1-1 stretch.
More trends on Edmonton and Colorado
This is where we head into the unbelievable. When is the last time a team this hot was still a very slight 1.95 to 2.00 underdog?
It does not happen often but Toronto walked into Tampa Bay on Thursday night and got shellacked. To be fair, Tampa Bay had struggled lately whereas Colorado just had one bad period against Seattle. There is a difference — or is there?
The shorter slate forces us to make us consider a few things. For one, a week remains in the regular season. Saving some of those gained units on the playoffs is probably a wise strategy. Darcy Kuemper is expected to start for Colorado while Mike Smith might just get the nod for Edmonton.
Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl versus Kuemper while an angry Nathan MacKinnon takes shots at 40-year-old Mike Smith. Those are some matchups.
Trends to consider include the fact that Colorado is 21-5 in its past 26 Friday games and 6-1 in the previous seven against teams with a winning record.
The Oilers have won 13 of their past 16 at home. Edmonton faces a contradiction when it comes to the Over though. They have seen this connect 12 of the last 15 times at home but just once in their last seven contests against Western Conference foes.
The Under is 6-2 in Edmonton lately too. Also, the favourite has won five straight meetings. That is a lot of numbers to digest.
Picking spots to exploit is wise. Again, see how the shot, goal, and point prop bets move for the notables first.
Colorado has won both meetings but beyond regulation. One was a shootout and the other was in overtime. The previous matchup was on April 9 when the Avalanche got out of Edmonton with a 2-1 win via “Period 5” or the aforementioned shootout. If the goaltending is on, then look out.
The game should have the feel of a playoff game like the first two meetings as Edmonton gamely tries to defend its home ice to make a statement. Attack the props here tonight, especially those shots.
The Ottawa Senators play in Columbus on Friday night
When betting on sports, nothing gets to be more of a headache than trying to gauge two teams playing out their remaining games.
Ottawa does get lucky on Friday night as the Columbus Blue Jackets are banged up and without Zach Werenski for this matchup.
Just imagine this for a second. The Ottawa Senators and Columbus Blue Jackets have an Over of 6 tonight. It appears Anton Forsberg will start for Ottawa with Elvis Merzlikins projected to get the nod for Columbus.
Ottawa has managed to tread water while going 5-4-1 in their past 10 games. Columbus has struggled, losing seven of their last 10 and three straight.
The Blue Jackets are starting to allow goals in bunches again. When a team gives up 40 over their last 11 contests, that is troublesome. Columbus is giving up 36 shots per 60 since Feb. 1 even at home. Opportunity knocks.
Simply, at some point, a breakout of goals feels likely. There is potential for a push here on Friday but the Over could easily hit.
Ottawa’s “Team Over” of 2.5 goals is enticing normally but at around 1.6 may be one to pass on. See if the number wobbles up a bit. Anything below 1.6 is not worth the value.
The Josh Norris goal prop is a fun one to consider tonight along with the Brady Tkachuk shot prop. Even the Norris shot counter is interesting. If the Under of 2.5 is available, take it. This has hit five consecutive games.
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