Anaheim searching for early-season traction
After commencing the season with four straight wins, Vancouver finally fell last night in shootout fashion. Will Willie Desjardins’ squad rebound tonight?
The well-rounded Canucks visit Anaheim at 8 p.m. ET. Online sports book Bovada.lv gives the Ducks odds of -190 to prevail. Conversely, Ryan Miller and the rest of the gang from the Great White North represent +165 underdogs.
Despite not placing one skater among the NHL’s top 20 in scoring, Vancouver continues to batter the bulk of the competition. Its No. 1 netminder, however, has hardly been able to savor the fun. Miller missed the last four contests due to core tightness. Still, he’s eager to return against an Anaheim group whose 1-3-1 start holds uncanny parallels to last year’s struggles in October.
Fortunately, coach Randy Carlyle saw some signs of life Thursday. The Ducks nipped Philadelphia, 3-2, as Corey Perry posted his second goal of the campaign. The Southern California crowd should also feel heartened by the fact that the Pacific Division stalwarts have captured three of their past five home openers.
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Miller’s bound to exhibit some signs of rust, and Vancouver certainly received the Kings’ best shot just 18 hours ago. Provided that Anaheim stays out of the penalty box, we feel very confident in recommending Carlyle’s crew here.
SUNDAY NHL FREE PICK: DUCKS -1.5