Colorado Avalanche at Buffalo Sabres NHL Picks & Predictions 2/11/2018

Sunday, February 11, 2018

KeyBank Center

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Colorado Avalanche travel to KeyBank Center to play the Buffalo Sabres on Sunday, February 11, 2018. The opening line for this game has the Avalanche at -160 and the Sabres at +144.

Colorado has a record of 29-20-4 this season and on the road they have a record of 10-13-3-1. They are 6th in the Central Division. They've scored 168 goals and given up 156 goals for a point differential of +12. For the season they have an ATS record of 29-24-0 and an over/under record of 29-22-0. Buffalo is 15-29-10 including 7-15-4-1 at home this season. They are 8th in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 124 goals and surrendered 178 for a goal differential of -54. Their record against the spread is 15-39-0 while their over/under record is 23-28-0.

Valuable Colorado Avalanche Betting Trends

The Colorado Avalanche are 29-24-0 straight up this year

The Colorado Avalanche are 29-22-0 against the over/under this season

Important Buffalo Sabres Betting Trends

The Buffalo Sabres are 15-39-0 straight up this year

The Buffalo Sabres are 23-28-0 against the over/under this season

Key Colorado Avalanche Injuries

12/18/17 D Sergei Boikov Shoulder is out indefinitely
11/19/17 C Vladislav Kamenev Arm IR (11/16)
02/09/18 LW Blake Comeau Upper Body is "?" Saturday vs Carolina
01/31/18 C Nathan MacKinnon Upper Body is out indefinitely
01/30/18 D Mark Barberio Lower Body IR (01/24)
01/16/18 RW Sven Andrighetto Leg IR (01/01)

Key Buffalo Sabres Injuries

02/08/18 D Jake McCabe Upper Body is OUT 3-4 weeks
01/27/18 D Zach Bogosian Lower Body IR (01/09)

Player Spotlight

Mikko Rantanen has accumulated 50 total points this season for the Avalanche. He has 17 goals this year with 119 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 14%. He has a total of 33 assists on the season and averages 18.5 minutes played per game. Nathan MacKinnon averages 19.3 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 15% by scoring 24 goals on 164 shots. He has 37 assists, giving him a total of 61 points on the season. Semyon Varlamov has 13 wins and 10 losses this season in net for the Avalanche. He has 856 shots against him and he's given up 77 goals. He's made 779 saves for a save percentage of 91%.

Player Spotlight

Jack Eichel has scored 53 total points this year for the Sabres. He has 22 goals this season with 199 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 11%. He has a total of 31 assists on the season and averages 20.3 minutes played per game. Evander Kane averages 19.4 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 8% by scoring 16 goals on 199 shots. He has 20 assists, giving him a total of 36 points on the season. Robin Lehner has 12 wins and 20 losses this year in goal for the Sabres. He has 1,202 shots against him and he's surrendered 105 goals. He's made 1,097 saves for a save percentage of 91%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Avalanche have 62 total points this season, which ranks them 16th in the NHL. They are 10th in the league in goals scored with 168 while they've given up 156 goals, ranking them 17th overall. They have had 196 power play opportunities and have scored 39 goals on those chances for a percentage of 20%. That is 18th in the NHL. The Avalanche have allowed 186 power play opportunities and have given up 31 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 83%, putting them 3rd in the league when short-handed. They average 30 shots per game and as a team shoot 10.71% for the season. They allow 33 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 91%. That puts them 17th in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Sabres are 30th in the NHL with a total of 40 points this year. They have 28 power play goals on 165 opportunities for a percentage of 17%. That ranks them 23rd in the league as a power play unit. They've allowed 159 power play opportunities and have given up 35 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 78%. That is 24th in the NHL. As a team, the Sabres are 31st in the league with 124 goals scored while they've given up 178 goals, which is 5th overall. They average 31 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 7.47%. As a team they give up 33 shots per game and have a save percentage of 90%. That is 26th in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Colorado is 27th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 47.4%, as they've attempted 2,881 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 3,200 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is 47.4% as they have 2,131 attempts while they have given up 2,367 shots on the defensive end. That ranks them 28th in the league. The Avalanche start possessions in the offensive zone 48.4% of the time, which is 26th in the league, while their defensive zone percentage is at 51.6% for the season. That is 4th overall in the NHL. They have 1,407 face-off wins compared to 1,774 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 44.2%. That ranks them 31st in the league. On defense Colorado has 1,028 hits and they have blocked 833 shots from the opposition, putting them 12th overall.

Advanced Statistics

The Sabres are 5th in the league in starting possessions in the offensive zone, doing so 52.8% of the time. Their defensive zone percentage is at 47.2% for the season, which is 25th in the NHL. They have 1,659 face-off wins compared to 1,576 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 51.3%. That is 10th in the league. On defense Buffalo has 1,214 hits and they have blocked 731 shots from the opposition, which is 27th in the league. Buffalo is 24th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 48.4% as they've attempted 2,930 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 3,126 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage of 48.3% ranks 24th as they have 2,237 attempts while they have given up 2,395 shots on the defensive end.

Who will win tonight's Avalanche/Sabres NHL game against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take Buffalo +144

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