Sharks vs. Canucks Pick
Are the San Jose Sharks and host Vancouver Canucks going to play a defensive-minded, low-scoring game tonight at 10PM ET?
According to oddsmakers at Bovada.lv, the Sharks are a -135 favorite to win on the moneyline. The Canucks are a +115 underdog, while the over-under is set at 5.5 goals.
San Jose comes in with a 17-10-2-1 record after a 3-2 victory Thursday at the Flames. Vancouver is 14-14-2-2 following a 7-1 home loss to the Predators. The Sharks won the first meeting this season via a 5-0 home shutout on Nov. 11. San Jose is 6-0 in six meetings since the start of last season. The under is 0-4-2.
The Sharks were led by Joonas Donskoi, Timo Meier and Chris Tierney with a goal and an assist each in the win at Calgary. Aaron Dell recorded 32 saves on 34 shots to earn the win. Donskoi broke a 2-2 tie with 2:48 remaining in the third period with his eighth goal of the season. Joe Thornton and Justin Braun assisted on the goal.
Alexander Burmistrov scored the lone goal for Vancouver in the loss to Nashville. Brock Boeser and Henrik Sedin assisted on the tally. That made the score 4-1 with 14 minutes left in the second period before the Predators added three more goals in the third period.
San Jose is 21-6 in the last 27 meetings. The under is 4-0-2 in the last six meetings.
The Sharks haven’t allowed many goals or good feelings at all to Vancouver the last couple of years. Expect the same tonight as the Canucks are rolling out one of their weakest teams in a long time. And after giving up seven goals in its last game, expect Vancouver to want to tighten up defensively. All signs point toward a low-scoring game that stays under the total.
NHL DAILY PREDICTION: SHARKS/CANUCKS UNDER 5.5