The Buffalo Sabres, spearheaded by Jack Eichel and Sam Reinhart, are ready to take the ice against Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, and the Colorado Avalanche at the Pepsi Center for an East-West showdown. Sportsnet will broadcast the game, and the action gets going at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday, February 26.
Buffalo Sabres at Colorado Avalanche Odds
Colorado enters the game as the substantial favorite with a moneyline of -215. The line for the Sabres now stands at +180 and the Over/Under (O/U) has been set at an even 6 goals (-115 for the over, -105 for the under).
Colorado is 36-25 straight-up (SU) and has earned moneyline bettors 3.4 units this season. That winning percentage, ranked fifth in the NHL so far in the early season, is a welcomed improvement compared to what the team managed during last year’s regular season (38-44). Among its 61 games this season, 29 have gone under the total, while 29 have gone over and just two have pushed. The team is 16-14 SU at home this season.
The Avalanche have converted on 18.5 percent of their power play opportunities this season, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, their penalty kill is ranked 20th overall, and they’ve successfully killed off 79.1 percent of all penalties.
Averaging 27.1 saves per game with a .916 save percentage, Philipp Grubauer (19-17-4) has been the top option in goal for the Avs this year. If head coach Jared Bednar chooses to give him a rest, however, Colorado could turn to Pavel Francouz (17-9-9 record, .927 save percentage, 2.27 goals against average).
On the other bench, Buffalo is 29-33 straight up (SU) and has lost 1.9 units for bettors taking the moneyline this year. 30 of its matches have gone over the total, while another 30 have gone under the total and just two have pushed. The Sabres are 10-19 SU as an away team this season.
The Sabres have converted on 20.1 percent of their power play chances this year, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 30th overall and it’s successfully defended 74.9 percent of all penalties.
Linus Ullmark (2.72 goals against average and .914 save percentage) has been the primary option in goal for Buffalo. Ullmark is averaging 28.5 saves per game and owns a 16-17-3 record.
Buffalo Sabres vs. Colorado Avalanche Free Picks
Free Prediction: SU Winner – Avalanche, O/U – Under
Betting Trends
- Over Colorado’s last ten outings, four of them have been decided by two or more goals (the team is 3-1 in those games).
- Power-play chances may be even more critical than usual tonight. The Sabres are 10-15 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 26-22 when they serve fewer than 10 penalty minutes, in total. The Avalanche are 20-10 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 27-12 when they’re in the box for less than 10 minutes.
- Buffalo is 1-2 in games decided by a shootout this season while Colorado is 1-1 in shootouts.
- The under has hit in four of Colorado’s last five outings.
- Buffalo has averaged 10.4 giveaways over its last five home games, a rise over its season average of 8.0 giveaways per game (ranked sixth overall).
- Colorado skaters have averaged 7.0 giveaways over its last five home games, an improvement from its season average of 8.0 giveaways per game (ranked 5th in the NHL).
