Vancouver Canucks vs Nashville Predators: Game Preview, Predictions, Odds and Betting Tips for 2024 NHL playoffs Game 1 | April 21st, 2024

The Nashville Predators, with a record of 47-30-5 and 24-14-3 on the road, will take on the Vancouver Canucks, who have a record of 50-23-9 and 27-9-5 at home, in the first game of the NHL Playoffs First Round.

The game is set to take place at Rogers Arena in Vancouver on Sunday at 10 p.m. ET and will be aired on ESPN, SN, SN360, CBC, TVAS, and BSSO. This game marks the second playoff encounter between the two teams.

The Predators (Wild Card 1), who are making their ninth playoff appearance in the last decade and 16th in the last 20 seasons, haven't won a series since 2018, the year they won the President's Trophy.

The Canucks' most recent series win was in the Edmonton bubble in 2020, and before that, they won a series in 2011 after reaching the Stanley Cup Final by overcoming the Predators in the Western semifinals.

In their most recent games, both Vancouver and Nashville faced road losses. Vancouver lost 4-2 to the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday, April 18, while Nashville fell by the same score to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday, April 15.

Vancouver Canucks vs Nashville Predators: Game Preview

The Nashville Predators, with an average of 3.24 goals per game, rank 13th and have a 21.6% success rate on their power plays, ranking 16th.

Filip Forsberg has been exceptional, with 48 goals and 46 assists, totaling 94 points. Roman Josi (23 goals and 62 assists) and Ryan O'Reilly (26 goals and 52 assists) have contributed 85 and 69 points respectively, while Gustav Nyquist has added 75 points.

Goalie Juuse Saros has a season record of 35-24-5, a 2.86 goals-against average, and a .906 save percentage.

In contrast, the Vancouver Canucks, with an average of 3.40 goals per game, rank 6th and concede 2.70 goals per game, ranking 5th. They have a 22.9% success rate on power plays, ranking 11th.

Brock Boeser leads the Canucks with 73 points, 40 goals and 33 assists, while J.T. Miller has contributed 37 goals and 66 assists for 103 points. Nils Hoglander has 24 goals, Elias Pettersson (34 goals and 55 assists) has 89 points, and Quinn Hughes (75 assists) has 92 points.

Filip Hronek and Connor Garland have a combined 70 assists. Thatcher Demko has a 35-14-2 record in goal, a 2.45 goals-against average, and a .918 save percentage.

Vancouver Canucks vs Nashville Predators: Injury report

Tucker Poolman of the Vancouver Canucks is sidelined due to a head injury.

In contrast, the Predators are without Dante Fabbro, who is out with an upper-body injury, and the status of Alexandre Carrier is uncertain due to an upper-body problem.

Vancouver Canucks vs Nashville Predators: Head-to-head and significant numbers

The Nashville Predators and the Vancouver Canucks have competed against each other a total of 86 times in both the regular season and playoffs. The Predators have a record of 35-42-2-7 when playing against the Canucks.

The Predators, with a win rate of 50.4% in faceoffs, rank 16th, slightly behind the Canucks, who have a win rate of 52.1% and rank 8th.

The Predators are also behind in penalty kills with a success rate of 76.9%, ranking 22nd, compared to the Canucks, who have a success rate of 79.1%, ranking 11th.

Vancouver Canucks vs Nashville Predators: Odds and prediction

The Vancouver, being the odds favorite, has won 34 of its 53 games and has a success rate of nearly 59.5% for tonight's game. They have also won 23 of their 33 games when the odds were shorter than -147.

Conversely, the Predators have been the underdogs in 38 games but have still managed to secure 18 victories. With odds of +124 or more, they have a 9-8 record, giving them a winning probability of 44.6%.

Prediction: Canucks 4 - 2 Predators

Vancouver Canucks vs Nashville Predators: Betting tips

Tip 1: Canucks to win

Tip 2: Total goals over 4.5: Yes

Tip 3: J.T. Miller to score anytime: Yes

Tip 4: Elias Pettersson to score first: Yes

Tip 5: Predators to beat the spread: No.