Vancouver Canucks vs. Anaheim Ducks: Best Bets and Preview
By Tyson Cole
The Vancouver Canucks are coming off a tough road loss against the team with the league’s lowest point percentage, the San Jose Sharks. This result didn’t come from a lack of effort, as the Canucks had a whopping 6.46 xGF compared to the Sharks 2.83 xGF, per Moneypuck. The final score was 4-3 for the San Jose Sharks.
After another surprising healthy scratch, Andrei Kuzmenko will draw back into his regular first-line left-wing spot for tonight’s game against the Anaheim Ducks. While it’s unclear who will come out of the lineup to make room for the returnee, Phil Di Giuseppe skated as the extra for the team’s morning skate, per Jeff Paterson.
Game Preview
The Canucks have an outstanding bounce-back opportunity tonight against the struggling Ducks. The Southern California team has lost six straight and eight of their last ten games.
The Ducks come into tonight short-handed with their two young stars, Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale, out due to injury. The most recent second overall pick, Leo Carlsson, looks to draw back into the lineup after taking their previous game off due to load management.
The Canucks have been a dominant team on home ice this season with a 7-1-1 record, outscoring their opponents 39-17. The Rick Tocchet lead team has won four straight head-to-head matchups against the Ducks.
The Canucks odds to win in regulation sits at -150 odds. There is value there, as six of their seven home-ice wins have been in regulation. Three of the Canucks last four wins against the Ducks have come in regulation. The massive outlier as to why I find value in this bet still is that all of the Ducks losses have come in regulation this season.
Player Props
These player props will be very power-play related, as the Anaheim Ducks allow the most power-play opportunities per game this season. The Vancouver Canucks rank top ten in power-play opportunities per game and have the league’s third-best power-play percentage.
Quinn Hughes Over 2.5 Shots on Goal and Point Parlay
Quinn Hughes has been nothing shy of spectacular on home ice this season. He has over 2.5 shots in eight of his nine home games this season, averaging 4.0 shots on goal on 7.8 shot attempts per game.
The Ducks allow the eighth most shots on goal on the road, averaging 33.1 shots per game. The Southern California team gets exposed by defensemen, allowing the fifth-most shots to the position, averaging 9.1 shots on goal per game this season.
With the Ducks allowing the most power-play opportunities per game, we must look into the Canucks power-play stats. Hughes quarterbacks the Canucks power-play and ranks second on the team in shots on goal and first in shot attempts on the man advantage.
Last game, in a similar matchup against the Sharks, Hughes had five shots on goal on sixteen shot attempts. The Canucks have had two nights of rest coming into tonight. Hughes excels on this amount of rest, having 3+ shots on goal in five of his last six games and all three home games this season.
Currently second in league scoring, the Canucks captain has points in eleven straight games, totalling seventeen points. Hughes has points in seven of his nine games, totalling eighteen points on home ice this season.
The Ducks allow 4.0 goals against on the road this season, while the Vancouver Canucks average 4.3 goals for at home. Hughes has points in eight of his last nine games against the Ducks, totalling twelve points.
Elias Pettersson Power-play Point
The young centreman has shined on the man advantage, recording a power-play point in 50% of all games this season, totalling thirteen power-play points.
Although he couldn’t find the scoresheet on the two power-play goals last game, It was encouraging to see the top unit get back on track. The first power-play unit was held off the scoresheet in four consecutive games before finally converting against the Sharks.
Elias Pettersson has an impressive recent history against the Ducks. The Swede has 2+ points in five straight games, totalling fourteen points. Over that five-game span, he has a power-play point in four of them, totalling five power-play points.
The Vancouver Canucks should see plenty of power-play opportunities tonight. The Canuck sniper trails only J.T. Miller and Quinn Hughes by two in power-play points this season.
Best Bet Summary:
Vancouver Canucks To Win In Regulation (-150) for 1 unit.
Quinn Hughes Over 2.5 Shots On Goal and Points (+104) for 1 unit.
Elias Pettersson Powerplay Point (+100) for .5 unit.
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Last Game Recap: 0-2 -2 units.
All-Time Record: 11-10 -0.6 units.