THE PROFESSOR NHL CODE BLUE DESTRUCTION
(NHL) Vancouver vs. Edmonton, 01/13/2021 10:00 PM, Score: 5 - 3
Money Line: -127.00 Edmonton (Home)
Result: Loss
The Vancouver Canucks go on the road to take on the Edmonton Oilers to open the season. Vancouver finished last season with a 36-27-6 record and lost in seven games in the Western Conference semifinals to Vegas. Edmonton finished second in the Pacific Division with a 37-25-9 record but lost to Chicago in four games in the qualifying round.

Vancouver ended up fourth in the Pacific Division last season and earned the seventh seed in the Western Conference playoffs. Last year's goaltender Jacob Markstrom, wasn’t re-signed in free agency and replaced him by signing Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby. Last season, the Canucks were 8th in the league in goals with 3.25 goals a game. They were tied for 19th in goals against with 3.10 goals per game. J.T. Miller had 27 goals and 45 assists for a team-leading 72 points.

Edmonton finished second in the Pacific Division and was fifth in the Western Conference standings. Last season, Edmonton finished tied for 14th in goals with 3.14 goals a game and they were 15th in goals allowed as they gave up an average of 3.03 goals a contest. Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid provide the Oilers with a dynamic scoring one-two punch. Draisaitl led the league in scoring with 110 points while McDavid put up 34 goals and 63 assists on the year. Mike Smith and Mikko Koskinen will be between the pipes. The Oilers were a near 50/50 split in net last season. Mike Smith had 19 wins with a 2.95 GAA and a .902 save percentage while Mikko Koskinen had 18 wins with a 2.75 GAA and a .917 save percentage.

The Oilers still have the best offensive weaponry and one of the top duos in the league with McDavid and Draisaitl. They will need to get more consistency in their goaltending. Vancouver has the same problem between the pipes and they don't have the offensive weaponry that the Oilers do.

Play on Edmonton.