The San Jose Sharks (21-23-4) and Colorado Avalanche (25-15-6) square off at Pepsi Center Thursday with puck drop set for shortly after 9 p.m. ET. We analyze the Sharks-Avalanche sports betting odds and lines, with NHL matchup analysis, picks and tips.
Sharks at Avalanche: Projected starting goalies
Aaron Dell vs. Philipp Grubauer
Dell has effectively taken over as the starting backstop in San Jose ahead of the stumbling Martin Jones. He has posted an 8-8-2 record with a 2.84 goals against average and .909 save percentage. Dell has posted four of his wins in six starts since flipping the calendar from December.
Grubauer is 12-10-4 with a 2.92 GAA and .909 save percentage so far this season. He will look to rebound after a 3-2 setback in overtime against the Dallas Stars Tuesday, blowing a 2-0 lead.
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Sharks at Avalanche: Odds, picks and betting tips
Odds courtesy of BetMGM; access them at USA TODAY Sports for a full set of today’s betting odds. Odds last updated at 11:10 a.m. ET.
Prediction
Avalanche 5, Sharks 2
Moneyline (ML)
The Avalanche (-209) have been tumbling lately, but they have the offensive firepower to break out of their slump at any time. Look for the Avs to be able to crack the combination for Dell early and often in this one.
The home team has cashed in 40 of the last 56 meetings in this series, and the favorite is 37-14 in the past 51 meetings overall.
PASS on the moneyline bet, as a $10 bet on Colorado to win in regulation, overtime or a shootout returns a profit of just $4.80.
Puck Line/Against the Spread (ATS)
The AVALANCHE (-1.5, +125) are the play in this one, mainly because they’re at home. The Sharks (+1.5, -154) have struggled away from home, going 8-12-3 overall, a major reason they’re in the bottom half of the standings and outside of the playoff picture at the moment.
Over/Under (O/U)
The OVER 5.5 (-150) is the lean here, but I don’t like the fact that it’s not ‘regular’ juice. You shouldn’t have to lay -150 on a wager which is generally -110, or -115 at most. Therefore I’d skip this one. You can do an alternate line of OVER 6.5 (+135) at plus-money for a better value, and with the high-powered offenses on both sides, this might be the way to go.
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