Canucks Neutralize Oilers Despite NHL Odds

The last time the Oilers and Canucks faced each other in the playoffs was in 1992. The Oilers won in six games.

What was happening in Canada then?

The Prime Minister was Brian Mulroney.
Alberta’s Premier was Don Getty.
B.C.’s Premier was Mike Harcourt.

Canada’s population was… pic.twitter.com/gkR2LxEPuI

— Craig Baird – Canadian History Ehx (@CraigBaird) May 4, 2024

Oilers vs Canucks Series Information

• Records: Oilers (48-31-9) vs Canucks (53-25-9)
• Start Date/Time: May 5, 10:10 p.m. ET (Game 1)
• Locations: 
  • Rogers Arena, Vancouver, BC (Games 1, 2, 5, 7);
  • Rogers Place, Edmonton, AB (Games 3, 4, 6)
• Oilers vs Canucks Live Stream: NHL.com

Edmonton is favored to win Game 1 against Vancouver at -130. The comeback on Vancouver is +110. And the total is set at six, which indicates this won’t be anything like the first three games, which averaged eight goals. Vancouver lit Edmonton up with 18 goals. And while this was before the Oilers’ coaching change, Vancouver also edged Edmonton 3-1. All-in-all, the Canucks held the Oilers to seven goals in four meetings.

Oilers vs Canucks Odds and Spreads

Oilers vs Canucks Betting Trends

• Vancouver outscored Edmonton 21-7 in four regular-season meetings
• The Oilers outshot the Canucks in three of the four games
• The Canucks are 3-0 as underdogs in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs
• Edmonton is 2-1 at home in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs
• The ‘over’ is 4-0-1 in Edmonton’s five playoff games this season
• Oilers F Connor McDavid was held to three points in three regular-season games against Vancouver

My goodness Adin Hill 👏 pic.twitter.com/j4Rmi2Xupm

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) May 4, 2024

Oilers vs Canucks Series Pick: Vancouver Canucks

We don’t expect Vancouver to destroy Edmonton as it did in the first three games. The fourth game did not feature McDavid. Still, Vancouver is a better-rounded team and potentially has the edge in goal. We’ll give the Oilers McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. They may be good bets to score 1.5 points per game. But that won’t stop Vancouver from winning.

The Canucks are deep and can score beyond their top-six forwards. Elias Lindholm, a former All-Star, is a third-liner. And the fourth line led by Teddy Blueger was a catalyst in shutting down the Predators. Meanwhile, in Edmonton, it still is the same thing: outscoring opponents to win. The Oilers can only win by overwhelming force or not at all – Game 4 versus the Kings notwithstanding.

That game was a snapshot of what Vancouver could do to the Oilers. The Kings pressed Edmonton, kept them from “exploding”, and overwhelmed them with plenty of scoring chances. But Stuart Skinner had the game of his life in net. That is unlikely to happen four times in this series.

We’ll put faith in Arturs Silovs, who looks to be the hot albeit unknown goaltender in this playoffs. Adin Hill did it for Las Vegas last season and Jordan Binnington, as a rookie, led St. Louis to its first Stanley Cup. Why not Silovs? He stopped 75 of the 80 shots he’s faced while shutting Nashville out in a series-clincher.

Edmonton’s best shot at victory here is through special teams. The Oilers killed 100% of its penalties against Los Angeles while converting on nearly 50% of its man advantages. Vancouver only converted on two of its 13 power play chances against Nashville.

If this trend persists, this may look like the Colorado-Winnipeg series where the former obliterated the latter. But it won’t be. Vancouver, unlike Winnipeg, has a fresh goalie on top of better penalty-killing.

The Canucks are a solid NHL pick to pull this off.

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Oilers vs Canucks Series Prediction

Canucks 4, Oilers 3

Questions of the Day