PREMIUM
Rogers' NHL ICE BREAKER >> LIKELY BLOWOUT!
(NHL) Nashville vs. Colorado,
Money Line: -165.00 Nashville (Away)
Result: Win
Money Line: -165.00 Nashville (Away)
Result: Win
The set-up: The Nashville Predators were the No. 8 seed in the West last year but made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals, before falling in six games to the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Predators were the NHL's best team in the the 2017-18 regular season, going 53-18-11 for a league-high 117 points. However, the Predators have looked less than dominating against the 8th-seeded Avalanche, surrendering the first goal in each of their first three playoff contests. Yes, the Predators overcame early deficits in the first two to take a 2-0 lead but they were unable to do the same in the third and are now in jeopardy of seeing their Western Conference first-round series knotted at two wins apiece should Game 4 at the Pepsi Center follow a similar path. Potential Hart Trophy finalist Nathan MacKinnon scored twice to help Colorado snap a 12-game winless skid to Nashville in a 5-3 Colorado win, continuing his torrid play in Denver. He has recorded 69 of his 102 points at Pepsi Center in the 2017-18 regular season and playoffs.
Nashville: "We got what we deserved. We didn't really show up the first period," said Nashville captain Roman Josi, who joined fellow defenseman Ryan Ellis and forwards Kevin Fiala and Viktor Arvidsson in being saddled with a minus-3 rating in Monday's 5-3 setback. The Predators permitted three first-period goals and have been outscored 5-0 over the course of the opening 20 minutes of each game in the series. P.K. Subban caused a stir by unleashing an open-ice shot to the back of the head of MacKinnon during Game 3, but the defenseman didn't pull any punches when asked about it. "Yeah, I'd do it again next game," the 28-year-old Subban told the Tennessean. Austin Watson has scored in four straight games dating back to the regular-season finale to join fellow forwards Ryan Johansen and Colton Sissons with a club-best four points in the series, with the latter two each having two goals and two assists.
Colorado: The 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 Predators in the first round. That said, the Avs have not backed down. MacKinnon has been Colorado's best player but captain Gabriel Landeskog recorded a personal postseason best with three points (one goal, two assists) in Game 3 while linemate Mikko Rantanen notched his first multi-point playoff outing with a pair of assists.
The pick: Colorado's fast start in Game 3 (four goals in the first 24:25 of the game) ended goaltender Pekka Rinne's night but he wasn't the problem, head coach Peter Laviolette said. "We weren't very good in front of him," he said after the loss. "I didn't think we were giving him the support he needed. It wasn't a sharp game for us. We left (him) in after the first to see if we would be better." Rinne will back in net tonight, as he 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). Colorado's win on Monday made it a closer series but the Predators are easily the better team and a bounce-back effort from the Preds would make it very tough for the Avalanche to come back against the Presidents' Trophy winners. That's my bet, as remember, Colorado's win in Game 3 broke a 12-game winning streak the Preds owned against the Avs. Nashville is an 8* play.
Nashville: "We got what we deserved. We didn't really show up the first period," said Nashville captain Roman Josi, who joined fellow defenseman Ryan Ellis and forwards Kevin Fiala and Viktor Arvidsson in being saddled with a minus-3 rating in Monday's 5-3 setback. The Predators permitted three first-period goals and have been outscored 5-0 over the course of the opening 20 minutes of each game in the series. P.K. Subban caused a stir by unleashing an open-ice shot to the back of the head of MacKinnon during Game 3, but the defenseman didn't pull any punches when asked about it. "Yeah, I'd do it again next game," the 28-year-old Subban told the Tennessean. Austin Watson has scored in four straight games dating back to the regular-season finale to join fellow forwards Ryan Johansen and Colton Sissons with a club-best four points in the series, with the latter two each having two goals and two assists.
Colorado: The 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 Predators in the first round. That said, the Avs have not backed down. MacKinnon has been Colorado's best player but captain Gabriel Landeskog recorded a personal postseason best with three points (one goal, two assists) in Game 3 while linemate Mikko Rantanen notched his first multi-point playoff outing with a pair of assists.
The pick: Colorado's fast start in Game 3 (four goals in the first 24:25 of the game) ended goaltender Pekka Rinne's night but he wasn't the problem, head coach Peter Laviolette said. "We weren't very good in front of him," he said after the loss. "I didn't think we were giving him the support he needed. It wasn't a sharp game for us. We left (him) in after the first to see if we would be better." Rinne will back in net tonight, as he 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). Colorado's win on Monday made it a closer series but the Predators are easily the better team and a bounce-back effort from the Preds would make it very tough for the Avalanche to come back against the Presidents' Trophy winners. That's my bet, as remember, Colorado's win in Game 3 broke a 12-game winning streak the Preds owned against the Avs. Nashville is an 8* play.
