The Edmonton Oilers and Colorado Avalanche meet Tuesday in game 1 of the West Finals NHL Playoffs at the Ball Arena. The Edmonton Oilers are coming off a five-game series with the Flames. The Colorado Avalanche are coming off a six-game series with the Blues.
The Edmonton Oilers are averaging 4.33 goals per game and are scoring on 28.2 percent of their power play opportunities. Evander Kane leads Edmonton with 12 goals, Connor McDavid has 19 assists and Zach Hyman has 51 shots on goal. Defensively, the Edmonton Oilers are allowing 3.08 goals per game and are killing 85.4 percent of their opponent’s power plays. Mike Smith has allowed 30 goals on 411 shots faced and Mikko Koskinen has given up 5 goals on 37 shots.
The Colorado Avalanche are averaging 4.3 goals per game and are scoring on 34.5 percent of their power play opportunities. Nathan MacKinnon leads Colorado with 8 goals, Cale Makar has 10 assists and Name Kadri has 34 shots on goal. Defensively, the Colorado Avalanche are allowing 2.7 goals per game and are killing 73.1 percent of their opponent’s power plays. Darcy Kuemper has allowed 21 goals on 218 shots faced, and Pavel Francouz has given up 5 goals on 51 shots.
The Oilers are 5-2 in their last 7 road games and 39-19 in their last 58 overall. The Avalanche are 55-13 in their last 68 home games and 52-19 in their last 71 overall. The over is 4-1 in Oilers last 5 overall. The under is 12-4 in Avalanche last 16 vs. Pacific. The home team is 5-1 in the last 6 meetings.
The Colorado Avalanche are going to be favored at home for obvious reasons, and the favorite has won each of the last six meetings between these teams. However, the Oilers have the offensive firepower to give the Avs a serious run for their money, and they’re going to pack value in the underdog role. With an average of 4.33 goals per game, the Oilers have been the scariest offensive group in these playoffs. The Oilers have also gotten the job done on the road. I just see value in the Oilers as underdogs given what they’ve shown us up to this point.