Avalanche vs Kings Prediction, Lineups & Player Props for Game 3

• The Colorado Avalanche are -160 road favorites to take a 3-0 stranglehold of their series vs the LA Kings
• The Kings have lost eight of their last nine against the Avalanche
• See my Avalanche vs Kings prediction, lineups and player prop picks for Game 3

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This side of the NHL playoff bracket is getting tilted, as the Colorado Avalanche (55-16-11, 29-7-5 away) look to take a 3-0 stranglehold of their series with the LA Kings (35-27-20, 15-17-9 home) in Game 3 of their best-of-7 series Thursday.

Sportsbooks are in agreement, as the Avs are crisp -160 road favorites in the NHL odds.

Puck drop is at 10pm ET from crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, with TNT / truTV / HBO Max carrying the broadcast coverage.

Read below as I share my prediction, updated odds, projected lineups and a few of my favorite player props.

Avalanche vs Kings Prediction

• Pick: Avalanche -1.5 (+165 at bet365)

The Kings are kind of unfortunate for playing well enough to earn a split in Colorado, as they held the top offense in the NHL to four goals over two games, and still failed to come away with a win, losing both contests 2-1, including an OT loss in Game 2 to puts them in this virtual must-win scenario.

Unfortunately, I don’t see it happening, and I actually think this one could get kind of ugly.

Throughout this season, at no point did the Avs ever score two goals in back-to-back games and come away victorious, which has happened to start this series.

In fact, the Avs have owned this head-to-head, with wins in five straight games and in eight of nine overall. These two games mark the first time the Kings have held Colorado to less than four goals in any of those wins.

But on the other side, apart from an LA 5-4 win on April 12, 2025 — the second-to-last game of the 2025 regular season — the Kings have been held to two goals or less in every other contest.

For all their offensive prowess, Colorado is also the top team in the NHL in goals against, finishing the year at 2.40, and no other team getting under the 2.70 range.

Colorado has built a 2-0 series lead, and Nathan MacKinnon, the NHL goal scoring leader who finished third in scoring with 127 points, has registered just one assist and seven shots on goal.

Artem Panarin has literally been a one-man show for LA, scoring the only two goals in the series for the Kings. Unless they get some production somewhere soon, the Kings won’t be able to keep up with a team with the top Stanley Cup Championship odds.

It might already be too late.

Avalanche vs Kings Odds

The interactive widget above will update automatically throughout the day.

Colorado is getting decent -156 odds to win outright at FanDuel, while covering by two or more goals on the puckline pays out at +165 odds, courtesy of bet365.

Over at DraftKings, the Kings have +140 odds to win, while staying within two goals offers a less satisfying -180 odds on the spread.

The total remains steady at 5.5 goals, with a -114 payout for the Over at FanDuel, while the Under pays out at -105 at bet365.

Avalanche vs Kings Projected Lineups

Colorado Avalanche Projected Lines

Forwards:

Artturi Lehkonen – Nathan MacKinnon – Martin Necas
Parker Kelly – Brock Nelson – Valeri Nichushkin
Gabriel Landeskog – Nazem Kadri – Nicolas Roy
Joel Kiviranta – Jack Drury – Logan O’Connor

Defense:

Devon Toews – Cale Makar
Brent Burns – Josh Manson
Brett Kulak – Sam Malinski

Expected Starter: Scott Wedgewood (2-0, 0.94 GAA, .960 SV%)

LA Kings Projected Lines

Forwards:

Artemi Panarin – Anze Kopitar – Adrian Kempe
Trevor Moore – Quinton Byfield – Alex Laferriere
Joel Armia – Scott Laughton – Jared Wright
Mathieu Joseph – Samuel Helenius – Jeff Malott

Defense:

Mikey Anderson – Drew Doughty
Joel Edmundson – Brandt Clarke
Brian Dumoulin – Cody Ceci

Expected Starter: Anton Forsberg (0-2, 1.90 GAA, .941 SV%)

Normally, when a goalie posts a 1.90 GAA and a .941 save percentage like Anton Forsberg has for LA, you’d think the Kings were leading the series 2-0 or at least tied 1-1. Alas, Scott Wedgewood has been just slightly better, with a 0.94 GAA and a .960 save percentage.

Best Player Prop Picks for Avalanche vs Kings Game 3

• Nathan MacKinnon anytime goal (+105 at bet365)
• Anton Forsberg Under 27.5 saves (-105 at bet365)

My top NHL props selection for Game 3 is Nathan MacKinnon finally cracking the scoresheet for the Avalanche in this series. Since March 1, the 30-year-old centre has been held goal-less in three straight games just one time.

Prior to this series, MacKinnon had scored eight goals in his last 11 games against LA. And in his last 25 playoff games, MacKinnon has gone three straight games with a goal just once: a stretch from May 9-13, 2024, failing to light the lamp in three straight against the Dallas Stars.

I just finished talking about great Anton Forsberg has been, and now I’m picking him to get lit up?

This has been a great stretch for him, despite the losses, as he’s made at least 30 saves in each of the first two games of the series. That is actually the first time in his career Forsberg has accomplished that feat against the Avs, which happens to coincide with the first time he’s met them in the playoffs.

A regression could be coming though. In nine career regular season starts against Colorado, he’s gone Under 28 saves six times, and allowed at least four goals on five separate occasions. His record is just 1-7-0 with a 4.52 GAA and an .865 save percentage.