Vancouver Canucks vs. Calgary Flames: Best Bets and Preview
By Tyson Cole
The Vancouver Canucks look to redeem themselves after last games performance as they take on one of their biggest rivals tonight, the Calgary Flames.
Nikita Zadorov makes his Canucks debut tonight against, funny enough, his former team. Usually, you’d prefer to trade away your player to a team after you play them, but Calgary thought otherwise.
According to morning skate line rushes, Zadorov was paired with Tyler Myers. Hopefully, these two play well together, as this might be the most intimidating defensive pair in NHL history.
Game Preview
The Canucks are trapped in a pattern of winning one game and losing the next. If this pattern continues, we should see the Canucks win tonight.
The Flames have been more consistent, winning two straight and three of their last four. Calgary is 4-0-1 at home in their last five games, including a 5-2 win over Vancouver on November 16th.
Calgary has had Vancouver’s number, winning three of their last four head-to-head matchups. Calgary have scored three or more goals against Vancouver in five of their previous six matchups.
The Flames have the location advantage for tonight’s game. Calgary plays better at home, with a 5-3-1 home record, while Vancouver plays worse on the road, with a 7-6 road record.
It’s a little puzzling to gauge how tonight will go with how well the Flames have been playing lately, but are willing and open to making moves for the future. I see no advantage on either side or game total for tonight.
Player Props
Conor Garland Over 1.5 Shots On Goal
It’s no secret that Garland’s line with Dakota Joshua and Teddy Blueger has impressed me over the last few weeks. Garland and his offensive abilities have been one of the main factors for this.
Garland has cleared in five of his last six games, averaging 2.6 shots on 5.0 shot attempts per game. His consistency shows as he’s covered this line in 63% of all his games this season.
The Flames and their difficult matchup don’t scare Garland away. The Canucks winger has covered this line in five of his last six games, averaging 2.7 shots on 4.7 shot attempts per game.
With Rick Tocchet’s recent line juggling, we’ve seen Garland get a couple of shifts with the first and second lines, which should amount to higher offensive zone chances and more shots on goal.
Nazem Kadri Point
Nazem Kadri has built noticeable chemistry with rookie Connor Zary since his call-up to the big leagues. Kadri has points in ten of thirteen games, recording thirteen points with the rookie.
The centreman is in a three-way tie for the team lead in points with Jonathan Huberdeau and Elias Lindholm. Oddly enough, all three players are currently on separate lines but on the top powerplay unit.
The Canadian has historically found the scoresheet against the Canucks, recording ten points in eight of his last nine games against the club. Unfortunately, his only miss was this season, but I expect him to find the scoresheet tonight.
Thatcher Demko Saves
As I write this, there is no line for Thatcher Demko’s saves, as we have no confirmation on who gets tonight’s start. Demko is the likely starter, according to morning skate, per Jeff Paterson.
Demko is in another prime position to cover his save line, so I will provide the stats backing this play so you can play it closer to game time when we get confirmation.
The Canucks goaltender had a miraculous 40-save performance in a loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday night. Tonight, he gets a similar matchup in terms of shots on goal volume in the Calgary Flames.
The Flames are averaging 39.6 shots on goal in their last five home games, the most in the league by 3.1 over that span. The Canucks are allowing 30.3 shots on the road this season.
The American goaltender has 31 or more saves in four of his last seven games against the Flames. Of those seven games, Demko has faced 30 shot attempts in six games.
I like the Demko angle tonight if we can get a save range between 29-32.
Best Bet Summary:
Conor Garland Over 1.5 Shots On Goal (-150) for 1 unit.
Nazem Kadri Point (-130) for 1 unit.
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Last Game Recap: 3-0 +2.41 units.
All Time Record: 15-12 +0.98 units.