Edmonton Oilers vs. Vancouver Canucks Prediction, NHL Odds
Vancouver has dropped nine straight, plummeting to the bottom of the NHL standings with a 16-26-5 record. A chance at the post-season is all but over for the Canucks, so the roster is doing its part by going the opposite way and toward the first pick in the upcoming draft. Edmonton’s aspirations are yet again Stanley Cup or bust, and they’re quite on track as they enter Saturday four points behind first in the Pacific Division. Edmonton’s dropped three of four though and are coming off a shutout loss at home to the Islanders.
Puck drop at Rogers Arena goes at 10 p.m. EST, with Edmonton a -190 moneyline favourite and the over-under at 6.5 on the Saturday NHL odds.
Oilers vs. Canucks NHL Betting Odds
Ahead of a season-long eight-game home stand, the Canucks have yet to figure out how to play well at home this season. They come into this weekend with a league-worst 4-12-3 home record and have dropped six straight on home ice. Edmonton is 8-4 in their last 12 road outings but lost in their initial first to Vancouver this season via a 4-3 overtime loss. Kiefer Sherwood scored twice in that win for Vancouver, including the game-winning goal.
The over has hit in six of the Oilers last nine trips to Vancouver, and the total has gone over in six of Edmonton’s last eight games overall. Thursday’s 1-0 defeat seems to be a complete anomaly for the Canucks, which likely just means Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are due come Saturday evening. Draisaitl also scored twice in their 4-3 overtime loss at Vancouver back on October 26.
Edmonton Oilers
Connor McDavid’s 20-game point streak came to an end in Thursday’s disappointing 1-0 loss, the second shutout loss for the Oilers this season. McDavid collected 19 goals and 27 assists over the 20 games, joining Wayne Gretzky and Paul Coffey as the only Oilers to ever reach a 20-game point streak. McDavid’s 82 points on the season is still tied for the league lead.
Saturday’s the first of a back-to-back for the Oilers, who host the Blues tomorrow. Given the Canucks struggles, Saturday should be a good spot for Tristan Jarry to get another start in net. Jarry returned on Tuesday from an IR stint and stopped 23 of 27 shots in a 4-3 overtime loss. Jarry is 3-0-1 with an .878 save percentage since being acquired via trade by Edmonton.
Vancouver Canucks
A lack of scoring is hurting the Canucks night in and night out. Vancouver’s yet to score more than three goals in any outing over this nine-game losing streak. This includes scoring one goal in each of their losses at Ottawa and Columbus this week. Vancouver now returns home for eight straight games and a chance to either gain some support behind the home crowd, or make matters worse in front of a restless Canadian market. Kiefer Sherwood’s 17 goals continue to lead Vancouver but he’s only found the back of the net in three of his last 18 contests. Elias Pettersson has 13 goals on the season and has scored four times this month.
Kevin Lankinen is expected to be in net for Vancouver, with Thatcher Demko now on the injured reserve. Lankinen has been the Canucks’ worst goalie this year in terms of save percentage, posting an .887 mark in 24 games this season.
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