Predators vs. Avalanche: Game 4 Prediction, NHL Playoff Odds

Payton Matthews | Updated Apr 17, 2018

The Colorado Avalanche finally ended a long losing streak to the Nashville Predators with a Game 3 victory in their first-round playoff series. Could the eighth-seeded Avs pull another upset Wednesday in Denver to even things up?

Nashville

53-18-4-7

April 18, 2018, 10:00 PM ET

Pepsi Center

Colorado

43-30-8-1

Puckline	-1.5 +150
Moneyline	-185
Over / Under	o +6

69%

Betting Action

31%

Matchup NHL Odds

Puckline	+1.5 -175
Moneyline	+160
Over / Under	u +6

69%

Betting Action

31%

Matchup NHL Odds

There will be no sweeps in the 1 vs. 8 matchups in the Stanley Cup playoffs this year. Last year, Nashville was involved in one in the Western Conference, as a No. 8 upsetting No. 1 Chicago. The No. 1 Predators rallied to win the first two games of this year’s series against the No. 8 Avalanche in Nashville, but Colorado’s 5-3 home victory on Monday assures at least a Game 5 back in Nashville. Another victory Wednesday, and the Avalanche are guaranteed one more home game.

Predators vs Avalanche Stanley Cup Playoffs Betting Analysis

Line History

Sports Interaction customers are placing their bets on:

time	fav	line	total
Opening 17 Apr 3:28pm	NAS	-1.5 +170	O +6 -115
Closing 19 Apr 3:07am	NAS	-1.5 +150	O +6 -120

Before Game 3, Nashville was -5000 on the series line and is now -1429. Colorado has shifted from +900 to +600. The favoured exact series results remains Predators in five at +135. The Avalanche’s shortest odds are in seven at +800. The Preds are +185 favourites to win the West and at +375 for the Stanley Cup. The Avs are +2500 and +4500, respectively.

The Predators are 6-1 in their past seven meetings in Denver. The total has gone over in seven of the past nine there.

Nashville Predators

If there’s one glaring issue for the Presidents’ Trophy winners thus far, it’s getting off to slow starts in this series. Nashville was down 1-0 after one in both Games 1-2. Game 3 was over after one with the Predators trailing 3-0. Pekka Rinne might be the best goaltender in the world, but he was chased early in the second after allowing four goals on 15 shots – no, there is no goalie controversy on this team. Rinne will be back in there. Ryan Johansen scored his second goal of the series in Monday’s loss, Colton Sissons his second and Austin Watson his third. Nashville, which had won eight straight conference quarterfinal games, was 1-for-3 on the power play and killed off all five Avalanche chances, so that’s a positive.

Regular Season
Playoffs

Predators Team Leaders

Points	Filip Forsberg 64
+ / -	Filip Forsberg 27
Shots	Roman Josi 253
Penalty Mins	Austin Watson 123
Wins	Pekka Rinne 42
GAA	Pekka Rinne 2.31

Points	Nathan MacKinnon 97
+ / -	Patrik Nemeth 27
Shots	Nathan MacKinnon 284
Penalty Mins	Nikita Zadorov 103
Wins	Semyon Varlamov 24
GAA	Andrew Hammond 2.06

Points	Filip Forsberg 16
+ / -	Mattias Ekholm 4
Shots	Filip Forsberg 58
Penalty Mins	Austin Watson 12
Wins	Pekka Rinne 7
GAA	Juuse Saros 1.06

Points	Gabriel Landeskog 7
+ / -	Sven Andrighetto 1
Shots	Nathan MacKinnon 28
Penalty Mins	Nikita Zadorov 32
Wins	Andrew Hammond 1
GAA	Andrew Hammond 2.62

Colorado Avalanche

Colorado ended a 12-game losing streak against Nashville with Monday’s victory. Any shot this team has of pulling the series upset is for superstar Nathan MacKinnon to play out of his mind, and he was the No. 1 star in Game 3 with two goals. He now has five points in the series. Gabriel Landeskog added a goal and two assists. Jonathan Bernier stopped 29 shots. Defenceman Samuel Girard missed Game 3 with an upper-body injury. The winning team has scored five goals in each game this series. Colorado is simply a different team at home, going 28-11-2 there this season and tying a team record with 10 straight victories there earlier this year. That streak ended Feb. 18 in a 4-2 loss to Edmonton.

Regular Season
Playoffs

Avalanche Team Leaders

Points	Filip Forsberg 64
+ / -	Filip Forsberg 27
Shots	Roman Josi 253
Penalty Mins	Austin Watson 123
Wins	Pekka Rinne 42
GAA	Pekka Rinne 2.31

Points	Nathan MacKinnon 97
+ / -	Patrik Nemeth 27
Shots	Nathan MacKinnon 284
Penalty Mins	Nikita Zadorov 103
Wins	Semyon Varlamov 24
GAA	Andrew Hammond 2.06

Points	Filip Forsberg 16
+ / -	Mattias Ekholm 4
Shots	Filip Forsberg 58
Penalty Mins	Austin Watson 12
Wins	Pekka Rinne 7
GAA	Juuse Saros 1.06

Points	Gabriel Landeskog 7
+ / -	Sven Andrighetto 1
Shots	Nathan MacKinnon 28
Penalty Mins	Nikita Zadorov 32
Wins	Andrew Hammond 1
GAA	Andrew Hammond 2.62

Injuries

Nashville

Matt Irwin (D)

Ques Sat Undisclosed - 10 / 05 / 18

Mike Fisher (C)

Ques Sat Lower Body - 07 / 05 / 18

Calle Jarnkrok (C)

Prob Mon Undisclosed - 01 / 05 / 18

Austin Watson (LW)

Prob Sun Undisclosed - 28 / 04 / 18

Ryan Hartman (RW)

Elig Sun Suspension - 19 / 04 / 18

Ryan Johansen (C)

Ques Sat Poss. Suspension - 13 / 04 / 18

Viktor Arvidsson (LW)

Prob Tues Lower Body - 01 / 04 / 18

Yannick Weber (D)

Prob Thurs Upper Body - 25 / 03 / 18

Alexei Emelin (D)

Ques Tues Upper Body - 25 / 03 / 18

Kevin Fiala (LW)

Out Thurs Rest - 08 / 03 / 18

Colorado

Jonathan Bernier (G)

Ques Tues Lower Body - 19 / 04 / 18

Samuel Girard (D)

Ques Fri Upper Body - 14 / 04 / 18

Semyon Varlamov (G)

Out indefinitely Knee - 31 / 03 / 18

Erik Johnson (D)

Late May Knee - 30 / 03 / 18

Sven Andrighetto (RW)

Ques Fri Lower Body - 25 / 03 / 18

Colin Wilson (C)

Prob Mon Lower Body - 24 / 03 / 18

Carl Soderberg (C)

Prob Sat Illness - 20 / 03 / 18

Andrew Hammond (G)

Out indefinitely Concussion - 27 / 02 / 18

Mark Alt (D)

Ques Wed Acquired - 27 / 02 / 18

Anton Lindholm (D)

Prob Fri Upper Body - 18 / 02 / 18

Injuries

Nashville

player (position)	status		ats*current	o/u*	notes
Matt Irwin (D)	Ques Sat	Undisclosed - 10 / 05 / 18	1-0	0-1	+ -
Irwin is dealing with an unspecified injury and it is unknown if he will play against the Golden Knights in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final.
Mike Fisher (C)	Ques Sat	Lower Body - 07 / 05 / 18	1-1	1-1	+ -
Fisher has a lower-body injury and it is undetermined if he will return for Game 1 of the Western Conference Final against the Golden Knights.
Calle Jarnkrok (C)	Prob Mon	Undisclosed - 01 / 05 / 18	2-3	3-2	+ -
Jarnkrok is dealing with an unspecified injury but is expected to be available for Game 6 of the Western Conference Second Round against the Jets.
Austin Watson (LW)	Prob Sun	Undisclosed - 28 / 04 / 18	2-4	3-3	+ -
Watson suffered an unspecified injury but is expected to be available against the Jets in Game 2 of the Western Conference Second Round.
Ryan Hartman (RW)	Elig Sun	Suspension - 19 / 04 / 18	3-7	4-6	+ -
Hartman has been suspended one game for an illegal check and will be allowed to rejoin the lineup for Game 6 of the Western Conference First Round against the Avalanche.
Ryan Johansen (C)	Ques Sat	Poss. Suspension - 13 / 04 / 18	5-8	7-6	+ -
Johansen is facing a possible suspension for a hit in the last game and his status for Game 2 of the Western Conference First Round against the Avalanche is in question.
Viktor Arvidsson (LW)	Prob Tues	Lower Body - 01 / 04 / 18	7-10	9-8	+ -
Arvidsson was held out of the previous game due to a lower-body injury but is likely to be available for Tuesday's contest against the Panthers.
Yannick Weber (D)	Prob Thurs	Upper Body - 25 / 03 / 18	9-12	11-10	+ -
Weber is sidelined with an upper-body injury but is expected to suit up against the Jets in Game 4 of the Western Conference Second Round.
Alexei Emelin (D)	Ques Tues	Upper Body - 25 / 03 / 18	9-12	11-10	+ -
Emelin missed the last game with an injury to his upper body and it is unclear if he will participate in Tuesday's matchup against the Wild.
Kevin Fiala (LW)	Out Thurs	Rest - 08 / 03 / 18	14-15	14-15	+ -
Fiala will not be available Thursday against the Ducks as he is to be rested.

Colorado

player (position)	status		ats*current	o/u*	notes
Jonathan Bernier (G)	Ques Tues	Lower Body - 19 / 04 / 18	3-0	1-2	+ -
Bernier is hampered by a lower-body injury and it is unclear if he will be available against the Predators in Game 7 of the Western Conference First Round.
Samuel Girard (D)	Ques Fri	Upper Body - 14 / 04 / 18	4-1	3-2	+ -
Girard is tending to an upper-body injury and it is uncertain if he will return for Game 5 of the Western Conference First Round against the Predators.
Semyon Varlamov (G)	Out indefinitely	Knee - 31 / 03 / 18	7-4	6-5	+ -
Varlamov suffered a left knee injury and is expected to sidelined for at least the entire Western Conference First Round.
Erik Johnson (D)	Late May	Knee - 30 / 03 / 18	7-4	6-5	+ -
Johnson is expected to miss six-to-eight weeks due to a fractured patella.
Sven Andrighetto (RW)	Ques Fri	Lower Body - 25 / 03 / 18	7-6	6-7	+ -
Andrighetto has sat out the previous two games due to a lower-body injury, leaving his availability against the Blackhawks on Friday clouded.
Colin Wilson (C)	Prob Mon	Lower Body - 24 / 03 / 18	7-7	7-7	+ -
Wilson has missed the past five games with a lower-body injury but is expected to play against the Kings on Monday.
Carl Soderberg (C)	Prob Sat	Illness - 20 / 03 / 18	9-7	7-7-2	+ -
Soderberg sat out his second-straight game due to an illness but will likely suit up against the Golden Knights on Saturday.
Andrew Hammond (G)	Out indefinitely	Concussion - 27 / 02 / 18	18-9	13-10-4	+ -
Hammond is going through the league-mandated concussion protocol but has been activated from the injured reserve list. It is unclear when he will be available to return.
Mark Alt (D)	Ques Wed	Acquired - 27 / 02 / 18	18-9	13-10-4	+ -
Alt was recently acquired via a trade and it is unclear if he will suit up against the Flames on Wednesday.
Anton Lindholm (D)	Prob Fri	Upper Body - 18 / 02 / 18	20-11	15-11-5	+ -
Lindholm has been out of action while on the injured reserve list with an upper-body injury but is expected to be activated and play Friday against the Wild.