Avalanche vs. Jets Game 1 Prediction: Stanley Cup Playoffs Odds
These teams have had two very different ends to the regular season. The Winnipeg Jets are the hottest team in the NHL and they enter the playoffs riding a dominant eight-game win streak. The Avalanche, on the other hand, have stumbled recently with a 4-5-2 record over their last 11 games, including a humbling 7-0 beatdown at the hands of Winnipeg last Saturday.
Game 1 for this series opened as a pick’em on the NHL odds, with the total set at 5.5.
Avalanche vs. Jets NHL Betting Odds
These teams have never met in the playoffs, but as Central Division rivals they have plenty of regular season history. It’s been all Jets this year as they won all three meetings and outscored the Avs 17-4 in the process. It continued a trend over the last few years that has seen Winnipeg win six of the last eight head-to-heads between the teams.
There could be value in taking the Jets on the series line as they are +115 underdogs while Colorado is a -135 favourite to reach the second round. The exact favoured series result is the Avalanche winning in six games at +400, followed by the Avs winning in seven games at +450. The biggest long shot is a Winnipeg sweep at +1400.
If you’re looking for player props, the top three favourites to lead the series in points are all Avalanche players led by Nathan MacKinnon at +140. A solid novelty prop is Jets defenceman Brenden Dillon to lead the series in hits at +750.
Colorado Avalanche
Colorado has largely outscored their issues this year as they boast the NHL’s highest scoring offence with 3.68 goals per game. Hart Trophy favourite Nathan MacKinnon has set the pace all season, driving the offence with a franchise-record 140 points (51G, 89A). In addition to MacKinnon, the Avs have the star power of Mikko Rantanen (104 points) and Cale Makar (90 points). Valuable depth pieces include Valeri Nichushkin, who has 53 points in 54 games, and Jonathan Drouin, who posted a career-best 56 points while riding shotgun on the top line with MacKinnon.
The major concern for Colorado is goaltending. Alexandar Georgiev has struggled all year, posting a 38-18-5 record with a 3.02 goals-against average and .897 save percentage. The 28-year-old has hit a particularly bad stretch over his last six games, which has seen him allow six goals twice and four goals three times while being pulled two times. Rookie backup Justus Annunen has good numbers with an 8-4-1 record, 2.25 GAA and .928 SV, but he’s likely too inexperienced to rely on. The Avalanche will sink or swim with Georgiev and his performance will determine how far the team goes in the playoffs.
Winnipeg Jets
The Jets are the hottest team in the NHL right now and their eight-game win streak included a 7-0 dismantling of the Avalanche in Colorado on April 17 to sweep the season series. Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor have led the offence, with Scheifele putting up 72 points in 74 games and Connor potting 34 goals in 65 games. Look for the second line of Nikolaj Ehlers, Sean Monahan and Tyler Toffoli to be an X-factor in the series. Monahan and Toffoli have provided crucial secondary scoring since being acquired ahead of the trade deadline and Ehlers has five points (1G, 4A) in three games against the Avalanche this season.
Winnipeg has a massive advantage in net with Vezina Trophy favourite Connor Hellebuyck, who is a key reason why the Jets limited opponents to an NHL-best 2.41 goals per game this season. Hellebuyck had a 37-19-4 record with five shutouts in 60 regular season games. Among goalies who have played at least 30 games, the 30-year-old led the NHL with a .921 save percentage and he was third with a 2.39 goals-against average. He also played all three games against Colorado, posting a combined .958 save percentage.
COL
WIN