The Vegas Golden Knights are in Denver to take on the No. 1-seeded Colorado Avalanche in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals.
Highlighted by star winger Martin Necas, let's take a look at my three Golden Knights vs. Avalanche goal scorer predictions and NHL picks for May 20.
Golden Knights vs Avalanche goal scorer predictions for Game 1
| Player to score a goal | Odds |
|---|---|
 Martin Necas |
+155 |
| Brock Nelson |
+285 |
 Jack Eichel |
+220 |
| 💲Goal scorer parlay | +1500 |
Goal scorer pick: Martin Necas (+155)
Martin Necas was an elite finisher in the regular season, scoring 38 times on 27 expected goals. Outperforming his xG is nothing new – Necas scored 27 goals on 20.5 expected last year, and 24 on 19.8 the season prior.
He is an exceptional shooter who consistently scores at rates higher than the norm, yet he has one playoff goal despite generating 26 chances and 2.8 expected goals.
Necas has generated plenty of looks. They just haven’t gone for him, and it’s only a matter of time before that changes.
It’s also worth noting that Necas scored three times over three regular-season meetings with the Vegas Golden Knights, with his multi-goal performance coming against Carter Hart.
Expect Necas’ success to continue in this series, starting tonight.
Goal scorer pick: Brock Nelson (+285)
Hart really struggled with high-danger shots during the regular season, posting a .761 save percentage on those looks, ranking 68th among 70 netminders to play at least 700 minutes at 5-on-5.
Brock Nelson is a prime candidate to take advantage. He ranked second on the Colorado Avalanche in high-danger opportunities this season, and the vast majority of his shot volume comes from directly around the net.
Nelson also has a great track record of shot-generation against the Golden Knights and other strong shot-suppression teams.
He generated multiple shots on net in all three regular-season meetings. More noteworthy, Nelson has averaged 2.6 shots on net and recorded multiple SOG in nine of his last 10 against Top-10 shot suppression sides.
Goal scorer pick: Jack Eichel (+220)
Jack Eichel has piled up the assists during the playoffs, but don’t let that fool you: he’s been a very active shooter.
Eichel leads the Golden Knights in shot attempts and shots on goal but has scored just one time due to an unsustainably low 2.86% shooting percentage.
He scored on 10.38% of his shots in the regular season and has converted on at least 10% of his looks in all five seasons with the Golden Knights. He is an obvious regression candidate.
That could come sooner than later against an Avalanche team that is suddenly struggling to get saves.
They posted the worst save percentage of any team in the second round, and it wasn’t just one guy. Scott Wedgewood and Mackenzie Blackwood both struggled at points and were pulled from the net as a result.
Golden Knights vs Avalanche anytime goal parlay
- Martin Necas
- Brock Nelson
- Jack Eichel
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
Not intended for use in MA.
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