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The Vegas Golden Knights will host the Colorado Avalanche in their annual “Nevada Day” matinee.
Happy to all who celebrate.
We’ll mark the occasion by breaking down this matchup between two of the best teams in the NHL.
The Knights and Avs are essentially co-favorites to win the Stanley Cup as we turn the calendar to November.
Friday’s game is priced as a pick’em, with the Over/Under sitting at 6.5 goals.
This is a heavyweight battle between two teams with their sights set on lifting the Stanley Cup.
And while both rosters feature some of the best playmakers in the world, their terrific defensive numbers are what we’ll lean into Friday afternoon.
Avalanche vs. Golden Knights odds, prediction
Weird stuff happens in the first month of the NHL season, so you try to keep your wits before making any conclusions, but it does seem pretty obvious that the Avalanche and Golden Knights will be among the teams to beat in the Western Conference.
They do go about things very differently, however.
While Colorado wants to push the pace and use its speed, skill and pizzazz to overwhelm opponents, the Golden Knights take a more pragmatic approach.
Victor Olofsson, Cale Makar and Nathan MacKinnon celebrate a goal. Getty Images
Vegas has plenty of game-breakers at the top of the lineup, but the Knights’ defensive prowess is what separates them from the chasing pack.
Only two teams (Rangers, Flames) are allowing fewer expected goals at five-on-five than Vegas through the first month of the season.
When you’re as stingy as the Knights are, you don’t need to score the lights out to get results.
Betting on the NHL?
But Vegas is still doing it. The Golden Knights are averaging 3.7 goals per game, good enough for fourth in the circuit.
The one weakness for the Knights is the goaltending. Adin Hill has been sidelined, and the team made a controversial decision to sign Carter Hart, but right now, the net belongs to Akira Schmid.
The former Devil has had some shining moments in his career, and the Knights do a great job of making life easy on their goaltenders, but at some point, you’d like to see things stabilize in the blue paint for Vegas.
Colorado’s goaltending situation has also been precarious in the early going with Mackenzie Blackwood on the shelf. Scott Wedgewood has done an admirable job filling in for Blackwood, but the latter is set to return to the crease this weekend, either against Vegas or San Jose on Saturday.
However the goaltending matchup shakes out on Friday, it won’t jump off the page at you.
But that’s not what is important. What matters most is that both of these teams boast terrific defensive numbers and do strong work in front of their netminders.
Chances should be at a premium, even with all the talent on the ice.
Throw in an early start time and you’ve got the ingredients for a cagey encounter.
The Play: Under 6.5 (-124, FanDuel)
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Michael Leboff is a long-suffering Islanders fan, but a long-profiting sports bettor with 10 years of experience in the gambling industry. He loves using game theory to help punters win bracket pools, find long shots, and learn how to beat the market in mainstream and niche sports.
