Home ice has meant everything in the West Division final between the Vegas Golden Knights and the Colorado Avalanche – and that trend bodes well for the Avs as the series shifts back to Denver for Tuesday’s Game 5. The Golden Knights (46-17-4 SU, 33-32-2 O/U) drew even in the best-of-seven with a convincing 5-1 triumph over Colorado (45-15-4 SU, 32-31-1 O/U) on Sunday.
- Date/Time: June 8, 9 p.m. ET
- Arena: Ball Arena
- TV Coverage: NBCSN
- Sportsbook Odds: Avalanche -145 | O/U 5.5 (Line History)
- Golden Knights vs Avalanche Matchup Report
Sportsbook Odds Analysis
The Avalanche opened as -145 favorites and that line has held steady in most spots, though you’ll find a -140 at a few sportsbooks. The total is locked in at 5.5, with the OVER at -105 and the UNDER at -115.
Vegas News & Notes
The Golden Knights have dominated the past two games, and there’s a simple reason behind it: their forecheck has completely overwhelmed the Avalanche defense. Colorado head coach Jared Bednar acknowledged that his team has been on its heels for an uncomfortable stretch of the series, telling reporters: “Right now we’re spending too much time in our half of the rink.”
Vegas’s second line has done most of the damage in the series, with Jonathan Marchessault’s hat trick leading the Golden Knights to a one-sided Game 4 triumph. Marchessault, William Karlsson and Reilly Smith have combined for seven goals and seven assists, taking pressure off the No. 1 trio of Mark Stone, Max Pacioretty and Chandler Stephenson.
Colorado News & Notes
The Avalanche have won 13 consecutive games at Ball Arena dating back to the latter stages of the regular season – but that streak is in jeopardy if they don’t figure out how to handle Vegas’s hyper-aggressive attack.
Colorado was lucky to only lose Game 3 by a goal after getting outshot 43-20, and quickly fell apart after scoring the Sportsbook goal in Game 4 while losing the shot battle 35-18.
Having now been outshot by an incredible 109-49 margin over the last eight regulation periods, it’s unclear what the Avalanche can do to turn things around – but you can be sure it starts with a better showing from the top line. Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen were held pointless and had just five total shots in Game 4.
Betting Pick: Vegas (+125)
The chasm between these teams is so steep – and has been for the past 2½ games – that bettors would be foolish not to take a shot on the visitors at this price.
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Buy Sports Picks Now- Colorado is 11-2 in its past 13 games.
- Vegas is 3-7 in its last 10 visits to Ball Arena.
- The UNDER is 8-4 in the past 12 head-to-head meetings.
