We are in the thick of the 2021/22 NHL season, and things are certainly heating up! Today there are three games for us fans to sink our teeth into. With six teams taking the ice, it is going to be an exciting day of NHL action, so you don’t want to miss this.
How will today’s games shake out? Which teams will be in the winners circle, and who will need to bounce back after a loss? Only time will tell, but one thing is certain, we are in for some great games! So sit back, relax and if you like to have a bet, then you have certainly come to the right place.
Look below to find our free NHL picks, as we preview the three games on today’s schedule.
Colorado Avalanche @ Vancouver Canucks – 9.00PM ET
The Colorado Avalanche start a short two game road trip in Vancouver when they take on the Canucks. The Avalanche have managed to string together two wins in a row, which includes a 7-1 thrashing of the Canucks just a handful of days ago. The Canucks will be desperate to turn around their four game losing streak, and other than the game against the Ducks, all of the games have been lost by large margins.
Denis Kirilov
The top-favorite for the Stanley Cup Trophy, the Colorado Avalanche, is still trying to find its perfect rhythm. They have been through some periods of ups and downs so far and this puts them in 11th place in the West ahead of their opponent on Wednesday, the Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks have one of the worst defenses in the NHL that have conceded a total of 55 goals for 16 matches or 3.44 goals per game. The upcoming match will definitely give us an insight on Colorado’s current situation. Although they are guests in Vancouver, they are expected to win this one keeping in mind the Canucks’ poor form in recent games.
The Avalanche will surely aim for top 4 in the West as they would like to have an easier opponent for the first rounds in the Playoffs stage. In order to reach that milestone, they will need to start getting victories in such matches against teams without high expectations for the season. Colorado’s players are slowly, but steadily coming back into play as only Nathan MacKinnon and J.T. Compher are the biggest issues for the team as they are recovering from minor injuries. The Canucks don’t have anything to lose and they will try to please their crowd with an upset over the top contenders, but this won’t happen that easy. Although the Avalanche are far away from their highest level of play, I think they will cruise past the Canucks in the opening match on Wednesday.
Denis’ NHL Pick: Colorado Avalanche (-156)
Tony Battalio
Regarded as a preseason favorite, maybe even the favorite to win the Stanley Cup this season, the Colorado Avalanche sure have not lived up to the hype thus far. Colorado is coming into this game with a record of 6-5-1 through 12 games played this season. After starting off the month of November in rough fashion with back to back losses to the Columbus Blue Jackets they have managed to pick up victories in their last two contests against San Jose and Vancouver. Now they will play the Canucks again for the second time in three games, looking for another win to extend their winning streak to three games.
Coach Travis Green addresses the media after Tuesday’s practice. pic.twitter.com/V4X6FLTbHK
— Vancouver #Canucks (@Canucks) November 16, 2021
The Vancouver Canucks didn’t have high expectations coming into the year but they have been downright disappointing after the season’s full month. Coming into this game with a record of 5-9-2 through their first 16 games this year. After a somewhat decent start of 2-1-0 through the first three games in the month of November, they have since gone on a four game losing streak which they still have yet to break. Now they have the task of facing Colorado for the second time in a short span after losing to them only a few short days ago. I expect much of the same result in this matchup as the last one, as I look for the Colorado Avalanche to extend their winning streak, while handing Vancouver another loss to add to their losing streak.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Colorado Avalanche (-156)
Michael Lantz
After back-to-back losses against the Columbus Blue Jackets, the Colorado Avalanche erupted on both sides of the puck, outsourcing their next two opponents 13-3 (both games without Nathan MacKinnon); one of those opponents: the Vancouver Canucks. They’ll rematch with the Canucks on Wednesday night, as they will continue without MacKinnon for the near future due to the superstar’s lower body injury. The team will also be without J.T. Compher, a solid depth player who has racked up nine points on the year.
Meanwhile the Canucks have been turning into busts. After some inconsistent, yet optimistic play, the team went from being just under .500 to getting blown out in three straight. They were outscored 19-6 in their last three, and will have to face the team that was responsible for one of those blowouts on Wednesday night. Maybe with the game being at home, the Canucks will have a shot to make it a game—but even with MacKinnon out, they’ll still have to face the wrath of Gabriel Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen. I’ll take the Avs to win comfortably.
Michael’s NHL Pick: Colorado Avalanche -1.5 (+148)
Chicago Blackhawks @ Seattle Kraken – 10.00PM ET
The Chicago Blackhawks start a four game road trip when they take on the Seattle Kraken on Wednesday night. The Blackhawks are starting to find their groove, and have managed to string together three wins in a row, albeit to lower level teams, but still, a win is a win! The Kraken are currently on the other side of things, as they are on a four game losing streak, losing to teams like the Coyotes, Golden Knights, Ducks and Wild.
Denis Kirilov
This will be a match between teams who are struggling at the bottom of the table in the Western Conference. The Blackhawks had one of their worst starts to a season in their history with 9 straight losses. They made up for that with an incredible 3-0 run in their most recent matches, but they are still far from dominant when winning. The only time they entered the 3rd quarter with a bit of relief was against the Ottawa Senators when they won by 5-1. The situation in Seattle is pretty much the same as they are coming into this game with 4 straight losses.
Compared to the Blackhawks, the Kraken has a better offense, but they are struggling a lot on their defensive side. They built the team this year by mainly focusing on acquiring experienced players with attacking functions. They might have Jamie Oleksiak and Mark Giordano, but apart from them only Adam Larsson has a significant number of NHL games behind his back. I think this will once again prove to be their weakest point and Chicago will take advantage of it. My guess here would be in favour of Chicago’s second dominant win this season, but I will still choose the safer option and this will be taking them as the final winner of the match.
Denis’ NHL Pick: Chicago Blackhawks (+126)
Tony Battalio
Both of these franchises are desperate for a win as they head into this contest. The Chicago Blackhawks are currently 4-9-2 on the year through 15 games and have struggled to string together any kind of success until recently, as they have won three games in a row against some less than impressive competition like Arizona, Nashville and a depleted Pittsburgh Penguins team. It is hard to tell if this is really a turnaround moment for the Blackhawks or a situation where they are just beating up on the sisters of the poor. Those questions will likely be answered when they head north of the border to Edmonton in a few days to continue their current 4 game road trip that they are kicking off in Seattle on Wednesday.
As for the previously mentioned Seattle Kraken, they are not having the best introduction to the National Hockey League as they come into this game with a record of 4-10-1 through the first 15 games of their existence. They are currently on a four game losing streak and have the unfortunate distinction of being that team that gave the Arizona Coyotes their first win of the season. They will be looking to snap their losing streak and find some momentum as they head into the third game of their current six game home stand. As for the result of this game, I look for the Chicago Blackhawks to keep their winning streak alive over average teams before having to face the real test in the Edmonton Oilers.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Chicago Blackhawks (+126)
Michael Lantz
After a brutal start, the Blackhawks have come alive: they’ve won three straight, giving them four wins on the season. While they haven’t come against the toughest opponents, the Blackhawks don’t care and considering their Wednesday night opponent is the 4-10-1 Kraken, they’ll be happy to take another.
For Seattle, things have been rough. They haven’t been as bad as their record shows; they’ve created a lot of chances on offense, with power plays and finishing being an issue. Also they just seem to lack some discipline, losing a lot of games by giving up numerous goals in a short stretch or immediately after they score on offense. Also prized free agent Phillip Grubauer hasn’t looked like his Colorado self, which is frustrating because he was signed to be the cornerstone of this team. Still the Kraken will be hungry for a win after losing four straight and before they have to take on a stretch of games against some of the NHL’s best. Even though the Blackhawks are feeling it, I’ll pick the Kraken to get a much-needed win at home.
Michael’s NHL Pick: Seattle Kraken (-152)
Washington Capitals @ Los Angeles Kings – 10.30PM ET
The Washington Capitals road trip continues when they take on the Los Angeles Kings. The Capitals are playing on back-to-back nights, and are looking to bounce back after an overtime loss yesterday, 2-3, to the Ducks, which snapped a four game winning streak. The Kings are at the start of a nice stretch of games at home, and they are hopeful they can get back on track after losing their first game in November last time out, to the Jets, 2-3, in overtime.
Denis Kirilov
Right after their tough meeting with the Anaheim Ducks, the Washington Capitals will have to play another away match, this time facing the high-flying Los Angeles Kings. The Capitals are off to a great run lately with Alexander Ovechkin scoring in almost each of their most recent games except for the loss against the Anaheim Ducks yesterday. The team is in the top 3 of the Western Conference and with a win today they might contest the first place held by the Florida Panthers. Kuznetsov and Hathaway also began to rack up some points recently which further suggests the Capitals’ good current form.
The Los Angeles Kings were somewhat of a surprise in the beginning of the season as they were in the top 5 a couple of days ago. However, with their loss to the Winnipeg Jets after overtime, they dropped to 8th place. The team is winning its matches mostly due to its defense which will need to do some miracles to deny Ovechkin and his teammates. It seems that it’s inevitable to concede a goal tomorrow, so their attack will need to deliver as well. The Slovenian forward, Anze Kopitar, is the most valuable offensive player for the Kings in recent years and he continues to do most of the work in attack. He gets some help from Alex Iafallo and Adrian Kempe, but missing Drew Doughty and Andreas Athanasiou might play a vital role in this match against the Capitals. That’s exactly why I will recommend picking Washington as the winner of the game.
Denis’ NHL Pick: Washington Capitals (-110)
Tony Battalio
The Washington Capitals come into this game against the Kings with a record of 9-2-5 after last night’s overtime loss to a very hot Anaheim Ducks team. It is the second straight game that Alexander Ovechkin has failed to record a goal in, which is considered a slump by his standards this season. For Washington this will be the second game of a four game road trip that is exclusively on the western United States as they make another stop in California, this time to Los Angeles then San Jose before going to Seattle to finish the trip. They will be looking to respond with a win after last night’s loss to the Ducks.
Tough result, but the young guys keep coming through.
Congrats to @gpilon41 on his first career goal tonight!#ALLCAPS | @LeidosInc pic.twitter.com/81kLJC8MaV
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) November 17, 2021
The previously mentioned Los Angeles Kings come into this game with a record of 8-5-2 as they have turned things around in the month of November after a slow start to the season. Over the month of November, they have played six games this month and have compiled a record of 5-0-1 over that stretch with some impressive wins. As for the result of this game, I expect Alexander Ovechkin to get back into the scoring column and lead the Washington Capitals to a much needed victory on Wednesday night.
Tony’s NHL Pick: Washington Capitals (-110)
Michael Lantz
After a gritty OT loss to one of the NHL’s surprise teams in the Anaheim Ducks, the Washington Capitals will stay in Southern California to take on another surprise squad in the LA Kings. The Kings were winners of seven straight before a Saturday night OT loss to the Winnipeg Jets. At 8-5-2 the Kings have been a lot of fun to watch, but can they keep up the fun? The Kings defense has been a bit of a saving grace as they sit third in the league in least goals against per game. This has been especially key because the offense has only scored more than three goals once in the past seven games.
They’ll need their defense to step up big against a Washington Capitals team that has two of the league’s leading scorers in Alexander Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov. Along with a couple lethal scorers up front, the Caps defense has been quite good as well, as they sit just outside of the top five in least amount of goals against per game. This one seems pretty evenly matched but I’ll go with the Capitals to not go away from Southern California with zero wins to their name.
Michael’s NHL Pick: Washington Capitals (-110)
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*Odds and spreads correct at time of writing, courtesy of FanDuel.
