Blues vs Canucks Game 3 Odds and Pick – Aug 16

• The Vancouver Canucks have taken a 2-0 series lead over the St. Louis Blues
• Game 3 of the best-of-7 series will be played on Sunday, August 16 at 10:30 PM EST
• Read below for our game preview and best bet

The Vancouver Canucks extended their winning streak to five games by beating the St.Louis Blues in Game 2 on Friday to take a 2-0 series lead. Game 3 of the best-of-7 will be played on Sunday, August 16 at 10:30 pm EST.

The Blues have opened as -122 favorites in the Game 3 Canucks vs Blues odds, while the Canucks are +106 underdogs. St. Louis was heavier -139 favorites in Game 2.

Will the Blues bounce back to make this a series or should you continue backing the Canucks as underdogs?

Canucks vs Blues Game 3 Odds

Odds as of August 14th.

Bo Horvat Is Torching Blues 

Canucks’ captain Bo Horvat has taken over the series against the Blues. Horvat scored twice, including a highlight-reel shorthanded goal and the overtime winner, to lead Vancouver past St. Louis in Game 2. The 25-year-old now leads all NHL players with six goals in six postseason games.

Elias Pettersson and Tanner Pearson also scored for the Canucks in their 4-3 Game 2 victory, while Jacob Markstrom made 34 saves. Offense is becoming the story of Vancouver’s postseason run, as 10 different players have now scored for the Canucks through six games.

Both blueliner Quinn Hughes and goaltender Markstrom are proving why they were in the respective conversations for the Norris and Vezina trophy this season. Hughes has eight points through six games, while Markstrom owns a stellar .926 save percentage and 2.31 GAA this postseason.

Blues Winless In Bubble

While St. Louis forced overtime with seven seconds left in regulation in Game 2, they still weren’t able to get their first victory in the Edmonton bubble. The Blues have lost five straight postseason games and have surrendered an uncharacteristic 17 goals in those games.

Heartbreaker. #stlblues pic.twitter.com/GcD70Kol5x

— St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) August 15, 2020

The Blues haven’t necessarily been playing poorly against the Canucks, but they haven’t been able to match the skill level of Vancouver. The play of goaltender Jordan Binnington is also a problem. The Blues’ starting netminder has given up nine goals on 47 shots in this series and hasn’t look like his usual self. He has little time to figure things out.

A positive for St. Louis is that they’ve outshot and outchanced the Canucks in both games thus far. They’re also getting plenty of power-play opportunities as the Canucks have taken the most penalties of any team in the playoffs. The Blues haven’t really been able to make Vancouver pay yet, but remember St. Louis had the third-best power play in the entire league in the regular season.

Betting Advice 

The Canucks are getting some incredible play from captain Horvat and goaltender Markstrom, but don’t expect this Blues team to go down without a fight. They came very close to evening up this series and are going to be frustrated and determined for Game 3.

nervous laughter pic.twitter.com/seuNICgVha

— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) August 15, 2020

The Canucks are a great bet to take this series based on what we’ve seen through two games, but the Blues are going to come out hard in Game 3. Vancouver will benefit from getting home-ice advantage and last change, but a determined Blues group is not one I want to bet against.

Another reason I’m leaning towards St. Louis for Game 3 is goaltending. Blues’ coach Craig Berube mentioned after Game 2 that he will be discussing a potential goaltending change for Game 3 with his coaching staff. Jake Allen posted a solid .927 save percentage in 21 starts this season and owns an impressive .925 career playoff save percentage. Starting Allen over Binnington in Game 3 could be the spark that helps St. Louis get its first win in Edmonton.

Pick: St. Louis Blues Moneyline (-122)