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Nashville Predators vs Vancouver Canucks: Western Conference Playoffs – First Round
The Vancouver Canucks are starting their playoffs tonight at the Rogers Arena against the Nashville Predators.
The Predators have a better road record than home one
The Nashville Predators finished sixth in the Western Conference with a 47-30-5 record. They won three of the last five games to close out the regular season and are coming off a 4-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Predators are tenth in the league, scoring 3.24 goals per game, and are ranked 15th, allowing 3.02 goals per game. Filip Forsberg leads the team with 94 points for the season.
The Canucks have their best season in a decade
The Vancouver Canucks are third in the Western Conference with a 50-23-9 record. They won three of the last five games and are coming off a 4-2 loss to the Winnipeg Jets. The Canucks are sixth in the NHL, scoring 3.40 goals per game and allowing 2.70. JT Miller leads the team with 103 points for the season.
Betting Trends
Six of the last seven games between these two teams have gone over the total goal line. The Canucks have gone over in 4 of their last 6 games overall and in 7 of their last 10 home games. The Predators have played over the total goal line in 8 of the last 9 games played in Vancouver and 6 of the last 7 games against teams from the Western Conference.
Prediction and Conclusion
Both teams made a huge step forward this season and are going into the playoffs with high hopes. The Predators win more games on the road than at home this season, and they have a legit chance in this series. The Canucks were on top of the West for most of the season but slid to third place at the end. They were rock solid at home, winning 27 games in the regular season, and are slight favorites in this series. With the stakes high to open the series, this will be an intense game. Most of the time, these two score a lot against each other, going over the total goal line in six of the last seven head-to-head games. With the total goal line being set at 5.5 goals, we will go with the tradition and go over the line.
