Colorado Avalanche (51-24-7) vs. Seattle Kraken (46-28-8)
The first round of the 2023 Stanley Cup continues Saturday, April 22, with Game 3 of the Western Conference series between Colorado and Seattle, so here’s the best Avalanche vs. Kraken betting pick along with the latest odds update.
The series is tied after the first two contests at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. The Avalanche head to Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, Washington, as firm -153 moneyline favorites, while the Kraken are listed as +138 home dogs with a total of 5.5 goals.
After suffering a 3-1 defeat in Game 1 at home, the Colorado Avalanche were down 2-0 at the end of the first period in Game 2. Artturi Lehkonen and Valeri Nichushkin scored in the second period to tie the clash at 2-2, while Devon Toews lifted the reigning NHL champs over Seattle with seven minutes left to play in the third.
The Avalanche outshot the Kraken 41-29 in Game 2. Both teams went 0-for-2 with the man advantage and had just a couple of takeaways each. Alexandar Georgiev guarded the cage for Colorado, finishing with 27 stops on the night, while six guys accounted for one assist apiece.
“He was exceptional the whole night,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said of his goaltender.
Alexandar Georgiev yielded three goals on 30 shots in the opening clash against the Kraken. He went 40-16-6 with a 2.53 GAA, .919 save percentage, and five shutouts this past regular season. Georgiev was tied with Linus Ullmark for the most wins in the league, while only Ilya Sorokin posted more shutouts than the Avs’ goaltender. Colorado ranked ninth in the league in goals against (2.72 per game) and 17th in penalty-killing percentage (79.0%).