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(NHL) Nashville vs. Colorado,
Money Line: -155.00 Nashville (Away)
Result: Loss
Money Line: -155.00 Nashville (Away)
Result: Loss
The set-up: The Colorado Avalanche went from the NHL's worst team a year ago (by a wide margin) to a team that went 43-30-9 this season, while earning the West's final wild card spot with 95 points (one more than the Blues' 94!). However, the Avs drew the Nashville Predators in the first round, a team which itself was an 8-seed in the West last season but made an impressive Stanley Cup run that didn't end until Game 6 of the Finals! Nashville built off last year's playoff success and entered this year's playoffs as the team with the most points (117) of any NHL club in the regular season. The Preds held serve in Games 1 and 2, winning 5-2 and 5-4. The series now shifts to Denver, with the Avalanche hoping that the Rocky Mountain air will breathe new life into this series. The Avalanche matched franchise records for consecutive home wins (10) and total victories on the season (28) but have dropped 12 straight to the Predators, after losing the first two of this series.
Nashville: The Predators have spread their offense around in the first two games of the series, with eight players responsible for the team's 10 goals. Filip Forsberg (team leader with 64 points) and Austin Watson have each scored twice. Ryan Johansen scored in Game 2 to extend his point streak to four contests while defenseman P.K. Subban set up two goals on Saturday to boost his point total to seven (one goal, six assists) in his last eight outings. Viktor Arvidsson led Nashville this year with 29 goals and has one goal and one assists this series. Pelkka Rinne was a big reason Nashville advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals last year and is off a terrific regular season (42-13-4, 2.31 GAA & .927 SP). He looked 'ready for primetime " in Game 1 (25 saves & a .926 SP) but was not as sharp in Game 2 (4 goals allowed in 30 shots).
Colorado: "We have been good there all season, we used our energy to our advantage," Hart Trophy candidate Nathan MacKinnon said about playing in Denver. "We have won some big games at home. Everyone feels good coming to the Pepsi Center, and hopefully we can get some offense there." MacKinnon (team high 39 goals and 97 points) recorded his fourth multi-point performance of his postseason career with a goal and an assist in Saturday's Game 2 loss. MacKinnon has eight points (two goals, six assists) in his last seven games and captain Gabriel Landeskog has seven (two goals, five assists) in that stretch after scoring and setting up a goal in Game 2. While the statistics are piling up, the wins are not.
The pick; Here's the rub. Colorado has been terrific at home this season (see above) but the Avalanche are playing without their No. 1 defenseman Erik Johnson, their top goaltender in Semyon Varlamov (Bernier owns a 4.08 GAA & .871 SP in the 1st two games!) and may not have rookie defenseman Samuel Girard for Game 3. Meanwhile, a fully healthy Nashville team comes in having won 12 straight against Colorado dating back to the end of the 2015-16 season. Make Nashville an 8* play.
Nashville: The Predators have spread their offense around in the first two games of the series, with eight players responsible for the team's 10 goals. Filip Forsberg (team leader with 64 points) and Austin Watson have each scored twice. Ryan Johansen scored in Game 2 to extend his point streak to four contests while defenseman P.K. Subban set up two goals on Saturday to boost his point total to seven (one goal, six assists) in his last eight outings. Viktor Arvidsson led Nashville this year with 29 goals and has one goal and one assists this series. Pelkka Rinne was a big reason Nashville advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals last year and is off a terrific regular season (42-13-4, 2.31 GAA & .927 SP). He looked 'ready for primetime " in Game 1 (25 saves & a .926 SP) but was not as sharp in Game 2 (4 goals allowed in 30 shots).
Colorado: "We have been good there all season, we used our energy to our advantage," Hart Trophy candidate Nathan MacKinnon said about playing in Denver. "We have won some big games at home. Everyone feels good coming to the Pepsi Center, and hopefully we can get some offense there." MacKinnon (team high 39 goals and 97 points) recorded his fourth multi-point performance of his postseason career with a goal and an assist in Saturday's Game 2 loss. MacKinnon has eight points (two goals, six assists) in his last seven games and captain Gabriel Landeskog has seven (two goals, five assists) in that stretch after scoring and setting up a goal in Game 2. While the statistics are piling up, the wins are not.
The pick; Here's the rub. Colorado has been terrific at home this season (see above) but the Avalanche are playing without their No. 1 defenseman Erik Johnson, their top goaltender in Semyon Varlamov (Bernier owns a 4.08 GAA & .871 SP in the 1st two games!) and may not have rookie defenseman Samuel Girard for Game 3. Meanwhile, a fully healthy Nashville team comes in having won 12 straight against Colorado dating back to the end of the 2015-16 season. Make Nashville an 8* play.
