Will there be a goal festival in Game 2 as well?

Welcome to Open Goal Day on Tuesday in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals series between the Colorado Avalanche and the Edmonton Oilers. The flood of goals didn’t come as a surprise at 8:6, but the fact that there were so many again doesn’t speak well for the defensive lines.

The Oilers in particular have to start thinking about something, as the Canadians are now conceding 3.46 goals per game, by far the most of all teams still in the playoffs. An attack on the Stanley Cup is definitely not possible this way.

Their problem: They don’t have a top goalie, without wanting to offend Mike Smith. But at 40 years old, the Canadian is simply way past his prime. The goalie problem could come to Colorado on Thursday, though.

Regular goalie Darcy Kuemper was injured in the second period and could be out for Game 2. That doesn’t change much in our prediction for Avalanche vs. Oilers, though. A Colorado win is very likely and the goalie problems could lead to another high-scoring game.

Colorado Avalanche – Statistics & current form

The Avalanche continue to roll and on Tuesday in Game 1 of the Conference Finals, the Oilers were the ones to suffer. It has to be said that a little luck and a disastrous refereeing decision also played their part in the Avs victory.

The 3:2 towards the end of the first period, which was clearly confirmed as offside after the fact, counted for inexplicable reasons and turned the game strongly in Colorado’s direction. Nevertheless: With their 47 shots on goal, the Avalanche deserved to win in the end despite this gift.

Which goalie makes a better stop?

The eight goals were definitely a clear message. Not only to the Oilers, but also to their rivals in the East, that the only way to the Cup this year is through Colorado. With this offence, it’s also difficult to bet against them.

Moreover, their defence is not completely weak, even though it did not cover itself with glory in Game 1 either. However, regular goalie Darcy Kuemper was also injured then, which should put a few worry lines on the Avs’ face.

So on Thursday it will be a duel between the Avs backup (Francouz) and 40-year-old Mike Smith, who is currently completely out of shape. So another high-scoring duel is already foreseeable and it will only depend on which of the goalies can put a top game on ice.

Avs more broadly positioned offensively.

What stands out is that the Avs don’t have to focus as much on one line for their offensive barrage as the Oilers do. While the Oilers mostly have McDavid, Draisaitl and Kane (and Hyman most recently), the Avs have four lines that can all score.

On Tuesday, seven different Avs players scored and 12 players had at least one point. That’s unprecedented in this year’s playoffs and puts them miles ahead of the Oilers in terms of roster.

Thus, for Colorado vs. Edmonton, a bet on the Avs is once again the top option for bets for Game 2. Again, we can combine this bet with over points. As they say, never change a winning formula!

Key Players:
G: Pavel Francouz
D: Devon Toews
D: Cale Makar
LW: Valeri Nichuskin
C: Nathan MacKinnon
RW: Mikko Rantanen

Edmonton Oilers – Statistics & current form

A lot came together in Game 1 going against the Oilers. A hair-raising refereeing decision, a Mike Smith having another off-day and goals against at the most impossible times

After her first goal, it took all of 36 seconds for an Avs goal, then just nine seconds after her second. Their third goal was also countered within just two minutes, which already highlights a very negative point: The focus after one’s own sense of achievement is quickly lost.

Defence and goalie not Stanley Cup worthy

But that brings us to the main problem with this Oilers squad. As well put together as it has become offensively (Kane and Hyman have been excellent additions), the defence and goalie positions have been treated step-motherly.

Although it was clear that Mike Smith was no longer the goalkeeper he was five years ago, no action was taken and now we are seeing the consequences. Eight goals conceded in a game and 3.46 per game over the playoffs. That’s the fifth worst of any playoff team in the NHL.

Oilers no longer superior offensively either

While the Canadiens were still able to compensate for these defensive problems against LA or Calgary with a superior offense, that is no longer possible against the much stronger Avs. They score even more goals per game offensively than Edmonton (4.64 to 4.46).

However, these numbers alone already show that eight or more goals can be expected again on Thursday, which also makes the odds on pure over-points interesting for Avs vs Oilers. We’d still pair these with an Avs win, as that seems inevitable to us.

Key Players:
G: Mike Smith
D: Darnell Nurse
D: Cody Ceci
LW: Evander Kane
C: Connor McDavid
RW: Leon Draisaitl

Colorado Avalanche – Edmonton Oilers Direct Comparison / H2H-Balance

As predicted, the games of the Regular Season had little influence on this game. The only thing that mattered was Colorado’s current form, which is getting better with each game. If regular goalie Kuemper had not gone down halfway through Game 1, the success would probably have been even more pronounced.

So for Avalanche vs Oilers, a bet on Colorado is our clear betting recommendation for Game 2 as well. If backup Francouz can only put in a reasonably decent performance, their offence and the disastrous Oilers defence will get it right.

In terms of total goals, everything again points to a high-scoring game. The necessary seven goals were already reached after 23 minutes in Game 1. They should also be surpassed in the 60 minutes of Game 2.

Colorado Avalanche – Edmonton Oilers Tip

Avs + Over 5.5 was our bet on Tuesday and it was already as good as won after 23 minutes. Since the betting companies are now a bit more cautious, you need over 6.5 goals for Game 2 to still get good odds.

Still: For Avs vs. Oilers, the forecast, at good betting odds, on Colorado + Over 6.5 is still our bet of choice. Pure over-points would also still be a possibility, whereby we can even go as far as over 7 or over 7.5 there.

For Game 2, we again offer bets on one or more scoring points by the top stars MacKinnon, McDavid or Draisaitl. Together, the three even scored seven points on Tuesday. Each of them at least two.