Flames Have Lost Three Straight; Listed as +115 Underdogs on February 8th vs Canucks
- The Vancouver Canucks (-127) are 6-3-1 in their last 10 games
- The Calgary Flames (+115) are 4-5-1 in their last 10 games, including 3 straight losses.
- The teams are 1-1 in their season series against each other – get our betting prediction below
The Calgary Flames (27-22-6) head into Vancouver for a Pacific Division matchup five points back of the Vancouver Canucks (30-20-5) in a playoff-style game on Saturday night. The Flames have lost their last three games.
Calgary Flames vs Vancouver Canucks Odds
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calgary Flames | +1.5 (-210) | +115 | Over 5.5 (-109) |
| Vancouver Canucks | -1.5 (+180) | -127 | Under 5.5 (-101) |
Odds taken Feb. 8
Flames on a Three-Game Losing Skid
Calgary has been outscored 14-6 in its last three games, including an 8-3 trouncing to the Oilers in the latest instalment of the Battle of Alberta. Goalie Cam Talbot and Oilers goalie Mike Smith fought at the end of the second period, as the Flames had already surrendered 38 shots and were already getting blown out 6-3.
Against San Jose on Tuesday, The Flames lost 3-1. Calgary scored the first goal to make it 1-0 in the 2nd period but San Jose got the next two goals on them. The Sharks Kevin Labanc scored on a backhand from the slot to give the Sharks a 3-1 lead at 7:45 of the third period and that finished the scoring for the night.
The Flames also lost defensemen Mark Giordano in this game to a hamstring injury. He is out week-to-week.
Thursday night against Nashville, Calgary got the jump early on the Predators with a goal 33 seconds in on a goal by Sam Bennett.
Nashville made it 2-1 by the end of the first period on goals by Dante Fabbro and Kyle Turris. They made it 3-1 in the second on Mikael Granlund’s goal. Calgary did get a goal from Rasmus Andersson in the second as well but then failed to register a shot for 12:29 of the third period.
Canucks Back Home After 2-2-1 Road Trip
Vancouver starts a 6-game home stand after going 2-2-1 on their 5-game road trip. Elias Pettersson did not play against the Minnesota Wild on Thursday. The Canucks fell 4-2 to the Wild and did not look as sharp as they had looked against the Sharks and New York Islanders at the start of the trip.
Vancouver played its worst game of the road trip on Tuesday in Boston where they were shut out 4-0. The loss of Pettersson in that game is really worse than what happened on the scoreboard. Pettersson is the team’s leader in points with 23 goals and 32 assists.
He is listed as day-to-day for the game against Calgary. In his absence, the Canucks do have enough depth at forward short term but if Pettersson is out for any length of time it could hurt their chances to hold onto top spot in the Pacific Division. We won’t write off their postseason chances just yet.
J.T. Miller, with his 54 points, can offset the absence of Pettersson somewhat. Next to Pettersson he is the most dangerous Canuck on the ice. His 21 goals, of which eight are power play goals, and his 16.3 shooting percentage against 129 total shots are impressive numbers.
Brock Boeser has been in a slump recently by his standards. Boeser has just two assists in the last nine games. Boeser had 59 goals in his first 140 NHL games but is stuck at 16 goals for the year. A breakout by Boeser would definitely help the Canucks both in the absence of Pettersson and to provide more scoring depth.
Jakob Markstrom has been lights out for the Canucks in net. Despite giving up eight goals in two games in losses to the Wild and Bruins, he has a .916 save percentage overall, which is above the league average of .909. He is 20-15-3 with a 2.77 GAA and one shutout.
Markstrom has the highest overall save percentage from the slot at .854. Only Winnipeg’s Connor Hellebuyck, Carey Price, David Rittich, and Sergei Bobrovsky have faced more scoring chances on net from there.
The Best Bet
The Canucks are returning home to the friendly confines of Rogers Arena where they have a 17–5–3 record and are undefeated in their last nine games. Calgary are 8-8-1 vs the Pacific including recent losses to Edmonton and San Jose. Pick the Canucks to win this game.
Pick: Vancouver Canucks ML (-127), Spread -1.5 (+180)
Ben has been an avid sports fan since the 1980s. Specializing in hockey, baseball, and tech, Ben has contributed to CKNW via his tech blog Vancouver Gadgets and currently writes for SBD, as well as other online publications.
