The Colorado Avalanche have had a rough last couple of games, allowing "touchdowns" in both of them, or seven goals in each.
The Seattle Kraken enter this one on a three-game heater, but they have a very tough test ahead of them against this defending-champion Avalanche team that needs all the wins it can get.
Cale Makar is back in the lineup, making the Avs a much better squad. He should be able to boost them enough to get back in the win column.
Find out my best bet in our free NHL picks and predictions for Avalanche vs. Kraken on Sunday, March 5.
Kraken vs Avalanche best odds
Kraken vs Avalanche picks and predictions
Despite losing each of their last two contests, Colorado Avalanche forwards Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen have been on absolute fire in their last five games. MacKinnon has tallied six goals and three assists in this span, while Rantanen has added six goals of his own plus one assist.
The Seattle Kraken don’t have nearly as much talent as the Avalanche do in their forward group. Only one skater has reached 20 goals for Seattle, and that's Jared McCann, who has 30 tallies on the year. With that being said, the Kraken have found ways to be one of the better offensive teams in the league, scoring 3.50 goals per game. The offense isn’t much of a concern for this team, but the goaltending and penalty kill unit are a massive crutch.
The Kraken are allowing 3.15 goals per game, and they have the fourth-worst penalty killing unit in the NHL. They don’t stand a chance of winning this game if they can't stay out of the penalty box.
Colorado’s power play is certainly their biggest strength, converting at a 23.2% rate (eighth in the league), and having Cale Makar back to be the quarterback makes this unit that much more scary. He has five power play tallies to his credit this year, and owns a share of the team lead with 16 power play assists.
Beating the Avalanche on home ice is a very tough task, and I think Colorado takes this one in 60 minutes.
My best bet: Avalanche 3-way moneyline (-105 at BetMGM)
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Kraken vs Avalanche moneyline analysis
The Colorado Avalanche have put together a very strong stretch of games, going 7-2-1 in their last 10 overall. The Kraken have been strong too, going 6-3-1 in the same span, but this game will also be their third game in four nights, all of these being road tilts as well.
Alexandar Georgiev is most likely getting the nod in goal for Colorado, and he has had a fantastic season. He enters this contest boasting a 26-13-4 record with a .919 SV% and a 2.66 GAA. He may have allowed five goals on 19 shots in his last start, but that was very out of character. Prior to the last game, he had won each of his five previous starts, so I expect him to produce a strong bounce-back effort tonight.
The Kraken have not gotten strong goaltending all season. Philipp Grubauer comes into this game with a .895 SV%, and Martin Jones hasn’t been much better, playing to a .890 SV% himself.
The Avalanche's group of forwards should be able to expose the weak goaltending of Seattle. I love the Avalanche to win.
Kraken vs Avalanche Over/Under analysis
The Avalanche have played in some really high-scoring games as of late, and this high flying offense can explode on any given night. They're averaging 4.1 GPG over their last 10 contests.
The Kraken’s offense has looked pretty explosive themselves, tallying 14 goals in their last three games alone. McCann has caught fire in Seattle's last five games, tallying four goals and four assists in that span.
Both of these teams are certainly offensively-minded, meaning that this battle should be very back-and-forth throughout.
I don’t see this one being low-scoring at all, as the goaltending matchup isn’t going to be one to write home about. I think we should see a high-scoring affair, so I’d go with the Over at a reasonable line of 6.
Kraken vs Avalanche betting trend to know
The Avalanche are 12-3 in their last 15 Sunday games. Find more NHL betting trends for Kraken vs Avalanche.
Kraken vs Avalanche game info
| Location: | Ball Arena, Denver, CO |
| Date: | Sunday, March 5, 2023 |
| Puck drop: | 9:00 p.m. ET |
| TV: | Root Sports, Altitude, Sportsnet |
