Blackhawks vs. Canucks | NHL Odds, Preview, Prediction

Blackhawks vs. Canucks Odds

Both Chicago and Vancouver have been eliminated from postseason contention. The Canucks have a better record than the Blackhawks, but are on a four-game losing streak. Will either side have an advantage Thursday in Blackhawks vs Canucks?

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Chicago Blackhawks

Even among the worst teams in the NHL, Chicago is in a pretty sorry state. The Blackhawks have the worst offense (2.44 goals per game) and the 25th-ranked defense (3.61 goals allowed per game).

Finding silver linings for this team is getting difficult. Goaltender Alex Stalock has been one of Chicago's better performers this season with a 9-13-1 record, a 2.97 GAA and a .911 save percentage in 24 contests, but he's been struggling for a while. The 35-year-old has dropped his past five outings and posted a 3.88 GAA and an .869 save percentage in that span.

Petr Mrazek might get the start over Stalock on Thursday, but it's not like that's an issue for Vancouver. Mrazek has a 9-21-3 record, a 3.61 GAA and a .895 save percentage through 37 appearances this season.

If the Blackhawks' goaltending situation is merely problematic, their forward core is just sad. Max Domi and Patrick Kane still lead Chicago's scoring race, but both players have been traded away. Taylor Raddysh, who has 20 goals and 37 points in 77 contests, is Chicago's biggest remaining scoring threat.

At least Jonathan Toews (long COVID) is feeling well enough to play. He was limited to an average of 14:01 of ice time over his first two games back, and he might be used sparingly again Thursday. Toews did register an assist in each of his past two contests though, so he might be able to contribute again Thursday.

Vancouver Canucks

The Canucks were also sellers on the trade market, most notably parting ways with Bo Horvat. However, unlike the Blackhawks, Vancouver still has plenty of offensive weapons.

Elias Pettersson, J.T. Miller, Quinn Hughes and Andrei Kuzmenko have each recorded at least 70 points this season. Brock Boeser and Conor Garland have each surpassed the 40-point milestone, giving Vancouver six players with more points than Chicago's active scoring leader. That's an insane disparity.

The gap isn't nearly as wide when it comes to goaltending. In truth, Vancouver might not have an edge there at all.

Thatcher Demko has struggled this season with an 11-14-4 record, a 3.36 GAA and an .894 save percentage in 29 games. And he's been particularly bad recently, allowing 14 goals on 96 shots (.854 save percentage) over his past three outings. That led to Vancouver sending out Collin Delia versus Seattle on Tuesday, but he surrendered four goals on 27 shots en route to a 5-2 loss.

The Canucks' goaltending has been an issue all season. In fact, they've allowed 3.70 goals per game in 2022-23, making Vancouver one of the few teams below Chicago in that regard.

Blackhawks vs. Canucks Pick

Vancouver's defensive woes and its four-game losing streak haven't been enough to convince oddsmakers that the Canucks are anything but overwhelming favorites on the moneyline. Even on the puck line, where the spread is 1.5 goals in favor of Chicago, the potential payout for taking the Canucks is merely okay.

I think the Canucks are being overestimated, but not by a lot. Chicago is a really bad team that's just waiting for the season to end so it can see if it wins the Connor Bedard sweepstakes. The Blackhawks had an eight-game run from March 18 through April 1 in which they lost every game by at least two goals, including a 4-2 loss to Vancouver.

At the end of the day, I just can't bring myself to believe in this version of the Blackhawks. You could sidestep the issue entirely by taking the under of 6.5 goals. That would be a reasonable alternative bet given that the Blackhawks tend not to score much, but when you factor in the goaltending struggles these two squads are enduring, I wouldn't consider the under to be a safe proposition.

Instead, I'm going to be a bit boring and simply recommend Vancouver on the puck line. The Canucks' recent struggles just aren't enough for me to bet any other way in a match versus Chicago.

Pick: Canucks Puck Line | Play to -104

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