The Florida Panthers and the Vancouver Canucks meet in NHL action from the Rogers Arena on Thursday night. Two teams playing really well over the last couple of weeks, who keeps the puck rolling? Let’s dive in and take a look with a Canucks vs. Panthers Prediction.
Florida Panthers Team Preview
The Florida Panthers come into this one looking to rebound from a 4-0 loss at the hands of the Seattle Kraken last time out. Sam Reinhart leads the Panthers in scoring with 37 points including a team-high 17 goals while Aleksander Barkov has 28 points with 10 goals and a team-high 18 assists. Carter Verhaeghe has 23 points with 13 goals and 10 assists while Evan Rodrigues has 21 points with 15 assists and Matthew Tkachuk has 20 points with 15 assists of his own this season. Sergei Bobrovsky has posted a 13-7-1 mark with a 2.45 GAA and .911 save percentage in goal for Florida this season while Anthony Stolarz is 4-2-1 with a 2.29 GAA and a .914 save percentage this season.
Florida Panthers Team Facts
- The Panthers have won each of their last five night games following a road loss.
- The Panthers have failed to cover the puck line in each of their last four games as favorites against opponents on a winning streak.
- The favorites have won the third period in each of the Panthers’ last three games at Rogers Arena.
- The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 3′ market has hit in each of the Panthers’ last eight games as favorites.
Vancouver Canucks Team Preview
The Vancouver Canucks come into this game looking for another win after a 4-1 win over Tampa Bay last time out. J.T. Miller leads the Canucks with 42 points including 15 goals and 27 assists while Quinn Hughes has 39 points with 9 goals and a team-high 30 assists. Elias Pettersson’s added 37 points with 26 assists and Brock Boeser’s chipped in 35 points with a team-high 21 goals of his own. Filip Hronek’s added 27 points with 25 assists as well for the Canucks this season. Thatcher Demko’s gone 14-7 with a 2.42 GAA and a .918 save percentage in goal for Vancouver while Casey DeSmith is 5-2-1 with a 2.69 GAA and a .917 save percentage this season.
Vancouver Canucks Team Facts
- The Canucks have won six of their last seven games as home underdogs following a home win.
- The Canucks have covered the puck line in each of their last 12 games as home underdogs following a win.
- The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 3′ market has hit in each of the Canucks’ last eight games as underdogs against Atlantic Division opponents.
- The Canucks have won the first period in six of their last seven games as home underdogs following a home win.
Matchup/League Facts
- The Vancouver Canucks ranks 1st in the league for goals per game this season (3.83).
- The Vancouver Canucks are one of only two teams in the league to rank top 5 for both goals for and goals against per game this season.
- The Florida Panthers ranks 5th in the league for goals against per game this season (2.57).
- The Florida Panthers ranks 2nd in the league for shots per game this season (33.7).
Canucks vs. Panthers Prediction
I’m taking the Canucks here. The Canucks are a solid team and frankly, they keep getting priced like they’re the Canucks of years past. The Panthers were on a nice roll, but I just didn’t like how they looked against Seattle and while I’m not one to overreact after one game, but losing to the Kraken and now taking on one of the top teams in the league this season is not a recipe for success in my eyes, especially at this price. Give me the Canucks.
