Tuesday night means hockey night, and there’s plenty of action across the NHL this week to enjoy! Tonight’s contest between the red-hot Colorado Avalanche and an ice-cold Nashville Predators squad may not be the biggest draw of the schedule but rest assured — there’s still betting value even in what feels like a lopsided affair.
Here’s an Avalanche vs. Predators prediction and pick on DraftKings Sportsbook for Tuesday’s contest.
Avalanche vs. Predators prediction, preview
The gap between talent doesn’t get much bigger than this one. Some would say the Avalanche are an absolute wagon as the current leaders for the Presidents’ Trophy with 48 points along with an NHL-best +49 goal differential. Colorado sits atop the league with 3.97 goals per game while allowing just 2.17, displaying two-way dominance while playing high-speed hockey with 34.0 shots a night (another league-high). Nathan MacKinnon looks like the Hart Trophy favorite with 49 points, followed by Martin Necas’ 39 and Cale Makar’s 35, making the latter a frontrunner for the Norris Trophy as per usual. This is a deep roster with talent both at the top and on the bottom lines, and the scariest part is that the power play hasn’t even come alive yet. With a 16.0% PP%, the Avs are just average with a man advantage; though the 86.9% PK% is second-best of any team.
The Predators are in the midst of a miserable campaign which has the team in the basement of the league’s standings. Their 24 points rank dead-last in the NHL and there are few, if any, bright spots. Nashville scores just 2.61 goals per game while allowing 3.57, the latter of which falls second-worst overall. With the power play hitting at just 15.7%, a decent PK rate of 81.1% doesn’t move the needle much for the special teams groupings. The Predators have just one 20-point scorer in Ryan O’Reilly, who has 21 points on the year. Beyond him, Filip Forsberg and Luke Evangelista are tied for second on the team with 19 apiece, while Michael Bunting has 17 and Erik Haula comes next with 16. There are very few positives to write about with this roster, but if there’s any good news, it’s that a reset via trades for veterans looms in the not-so-distant future.
Avalanche vs. Predators pick, best bet
DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Avalanche as -205 road favorites on the Moneyline tonight. The Predators hold +170 odds to win outright with the total set at 6.5 combined goals. Looking toward the betting splits, 92% of straight bets favor Colorado to win with 73% of wagers on the total going under.
Will this game be a bloodbath? To be quite frank, probably so. The Avalanche are demolishing just about any team which stands in their path and do so in dominant fashion, pressuring the net at will while limiting opponents’ opportunities at the other end. Scott Wedgewood will start in goal for Colorado as well, bringing an elite 2.07 GAA and .920 SV% to the table against a struggling Nashville offense. Conversely, the Predators can’t score or stop a shot to save their lives. Netminder Juuse Saros has a 3.04 GAA and .893 SV% this season, and without much support on the blue line in front of him, the outlook remains grim for the home team.
Bettors can snag Avalanche -1.5 at +124 odds, but it’s not unreasonable to consider an alt line of -2.5 at +210 odds or play a team total market either. A couple of options for the latter are over 3.5 goals for Colorado at -125 odds as well as under 1.5 goals for Nashville at +225. Pick your poison — just avoid trying to play an upset.
