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Game 7 of what has been a scintillating, back-and-forth series between the Oilers and Canucks will take place Monday night at Rogers Arena in Vancouver.
Neither team has won two games in a row in the series, and there are compelling cases for both sides entering the contest that will determine which club will face the Stars in the Western Conference Finals.
Oilers vs. Canucks odds
- Moneyline: Oilers -162, Canucks +136
- Puck Line: Oilers -1.5 (+164), Canucks +1.5 (-200)
- Total: Over 5.5 (-120), Under 5.5 (+100)
Odds via DraftKings
Oilers vs. Canucks prediction
The Oilers have owned more of the overall chances but faltered in some key moments early on in the series. They own a 54.26% expected goal share in the series, and have held the Canucks to only 20.93 shots per game.
Third-string goaltender Arturs Silovs has outplayed the Oilers’ goaltenders, as he has put up an .895 save percentage compared to the .861% the Oilers have received from Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard.
The Oilers brought an exceptional defensive performance in Game 6, which allowed Skinner to thrive in his return to the net after sitting two straight games in favor of Pickard.
The Canucks received some brutal news on Sunday with forward Brock Boeser out for the foreseeable future due to blood-clotting issues. His absence leaves a considerable hole on the top line and top power-play unit. The news has swung the Oilers moneyline from -140 to -160, which is enough of an adjustment.
The Canucks were not at their best defensively in Game 6, but we should count on them bouncing back to allow far fewer high-danger chances in this spot.
In these types of do-or-die moments, hockey generally is played with a conservative mindset. Players will err toward making safe plays as much as possible early on and try to avoid being the one who makes a season-ending mistake. We can count on the attention to detail defensively being quite high in this matchup, and generating offense should prove tougher than it has been for much of the series.
Power-play opportunities typically dry up in elimination games because referees will also avoid making borderline calls as much as possible. That’s a particularly important note in this contest, as the Oilers boast a historically strong power play, though the Canucks penalty kill has been more effective in the later games of this series.
Oilers vs. Canucks pick
Oddsmakers continue to have a hard time catching up to how different this type of game truly is in terms of totals. Games 6 and 7 in theese playoffs have averaged only 3.55 goals per game, and the under has gone 8-1. First-period unders have also gone 8-1 thus far.
Look for this game 7 to be a cagey affair, with a low-event start. The game total opened at a juiced 6.5, and has trended down to 5.5. There is less value than their once was backing this to be a low-event game, but the first-period under 1.5 does still hold some value at -110.
Best bet: First-period under 1.5 (-110, bet365 | Play to -115)
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