Chicago Blackhawks vs. Vancouver Canucks: NHL Odds, Prediction
It used to be when the Chicago Blackhawks visited Vancouver it was an event because the Hawks were perennial Stanley Cup favourites. Those days are gone as Chicago heads to Rogers Arena in the latest-starting NHL game of Thursday night.
Blackhawks vs. Canucks Betting Analysis
It’s the second of three meetings this season between the teams and Chicago’s last visit to Vancouver. On Dec. 28, the Blackhawks lost at Rogers Arena 5-2 in the front end of a back-to-back. Thomas Vanek, likely to be traded within the next couple of weeks by the Canucks, had his best game of the season with two goals and three assists. Rookie defenceman Brock Boeser, the Calder Trophy favourite and All-Star Game MVP, added a goal and three assists, and Sam Gagner had two goals an and assist. A 12-point night for that line – not too shabby. Nick Schmaltz and Ryan Hartman scored for the Blackhawks, and backup goaltender Anton Forsberg made 26 saves.
There are a handful of reasons why Chicago is struggling this season, but injuries to goaltender Corey Crawford is No. 1 on that list. He has been limited to 28 games and hasn’t played since Dec. 23 due to post-concussion issues. Crawford was having a strong season with a 16-9-2 record, 2.27 goals-against average and .929 save percentage and still isn’t close to returning as he’s not on this road trip. Forsberg and 32-year-old former minor-league journeyman Jeff Glass generally have not been good in his place.
Vancouver makes its lone trip to Chicago on March 22.
Chicago Blackhawks
The Blackhawks (24-19-7) won their last game before the break 5-1 in Detroit thanks to a strong start from Forsberg and then came out of the break Tuesday and upset the Predators 2-1 in Nashville as Forsberg stopped 42 shots. It’s perhaps his best two-game run of the season, and he’ll surely be in net Thursday. While Boeser is leading the Calder Trophy race, the Hawks have a good-looking rookie too in 20-year-old winger Alex DeBrincat. He is the youngest player with two hat tricks in a season in franchise history and has 17 goals and 15 assists. At 5-foot-7, many experts thought he was too short to be a big-time scorer in the NHL. The Hawks are just 2-5 in their past seven following a victory.
Vancouver Canucks
Vancouver (20-24-6) won its first game post-break Tuesday, 4-3 in overtime over Colorado to improve to 2-1 on a five-game homestand. Sven Baertschi scored 1:07 into OT, his 11th goal of the season and second in three games. Bo Horvat (11th of season), Michael Del Zotto (third) and Daniel Sedin (12th) also scored. Blueliner Chris Tanev was the No. 1 star with three assists, the first three-point game of his career and first multi-point game this season. Jacob Markstrom stopped 27 shots and surrendered three or fewer goals in eight of his nine appearances in January. The Canucks are 1-5 in their past six following a win.
