The Colorado Avalanche (30-16-6) and Columbus Blue Jackets (30-16-9) will lock horns at Nationwide Arena at 7 p.m. ET Thursday. We analyze the Avalanche-Blue Jackets sports betting odds and lines, while providing NHL betting tips and picks around this matchup.
Avalanche at Blue Jackets: Projected starting goalies
Philipp Grubauer vs. Matiss Kivlenieks
Grubauer checks into this one with a 16-11-4 record, 2.78 goals against average (GAA) and .910 save percentage across his 32 starts – he is on pace for a career high in victories. He won 18 games last season to establish a new career best in 33 starts and 37 games. Grubauer hasn’t faced the Blue Jackets this season, but was drummed in two outings in 2018-19. He allowed four goals on 34 shots in Columbus Oct. 9, 2018, and ended up 0-2-0 with a 4.58 GAA and .871 SV% in those two outings last season.
Kivlenieks is expected to start, giving the red-hot Elvis Merzlikins a breather after he posted a shutout Friday night. The latter has a 12-6-4 record, 2.20 GAA and .930 SV% – he has blanked the opposition in five of the previous eight games. Meanwhile, Kivlenieks has been no slouch, going 1-0-1 with a 1.49 GAA and .946 SV% in two starts.
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Avalanche at Blue Jackets: Odds, picks and betting tips
Odds courtesy of BetMGM; access them at USA TODAY Sports for a full list. Odds last updated at 11:25 a.m. ET.
Prediction
Avalanche 3, Blue Jackets 2
Moneyline (ML)
The AVALANCHE (-143) are moderate road favorites, most likely due to the fact the Blue Jackets (+120) just played Friday night and will be using their backup tendy. I’d like to see a little more value and less chalk to eat, but Colorado is still the play.
New to sports betting? A $10 bet on the Avalanche to win returns a profit of $6.99, while a $10 wager on the Blue Jackets results in a profit of $12.
Puck Line/Against the Spread (ATS)
Not a big fan of the puck line bet in this one – Colorado is -1.5, +185; Columbus is +1.5 -228. I think this game has the potential to be a rather low-scoring contest, even with Kivlenieks in the crease rather than Merzlikins. The Blue Jackets have been grinding out plenty of low-scoring wins and relying upon their defense. AVOID.
Over/Under (O/U)
UNDER 5.5 (+105) is a nice value play at plus-money. While it’s all Over all the time for the Avalanche lately, going 4-1 in the past five, and 19-9-1 in the past 29 as a road favorite, it’s all Under for the Blue Jackets recently. The Under is a perfect 4-0 in their past four as a home ‘dog, 42-19-1 in the past 62 at home and 20-8 in the previous 28 games overall for CBJ.
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