Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon (29) celebrates his goal with center Martin Necas (88) and left wing Artturi Lehkonen (62) in the third period against the New Jersey Devils at Ball Arena. Photo Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images
LAS VEGAS -- Now that the 'second half' of the season is underway, and we've had six days of action to observe, it's time to bring back the Best Bets. Only three games on the card tonight, but there is value from the Central Division, with the Minnesota Wild visiting the Colorado Avalanche.
The Wild, who got blasted in Salt Lake City last night, are ahead of Colorado by two points in the division. The race to lock up a playoff spot with a little more than 20 games left in the season is getting tight, and both of these teams would much rather know they're locked in rather than a wild card.
If it comes down to a tiebreaker, it makes this game even more important.
Let's do a deep dive into this one:
WHY MINNESOTA: The Wild had Marc-Andre Fleury in net last night, and will turn to their ace, Filip Gustavsson, who is 22-12-3 this season. Since a four-start skid, Gustavsson has won four of his six last appearances. He'll be out to avenge his last outing, when he allowed three goals in a home loss to the Detroit Red Wings.
WHY COLORADO: The Avalanche played two nights back and will be rested for this one as Wednesday's 5-1 win was at home over the New Jersey Devils. It was the bounce back the Avs needed after coming out of the 4 Nations Face-Off break with back-to-back road losses in Nashville and St. Louis, and can spark a win streak during this season-high six-game homestand.
All betting lines are from Bet365 and are subject to change. Hockey is a difficult sport to predict so please gamble responsibly.
THE PICK: AVALANCHE -1.5 -125 -- Not only are the Wild coming in for their second game in as many nights, and playing from one high-altitude city to another, but their ace Gustavsson hasn't had the best history against the Avs. In eight career appearances against Colorado, Gustavsson is 1-6-1 with a 4.17 goals-against average and .882 save percentage. The Avs have won six of the last eight meetings in Denver and will get it done again tonight.
(Season Record: 16-27-1, Net: -1320$, based on 100$ units)