ice picks 1/11!...2-0 last night
Colorado Avalanche at Calgary Flames (-165, 5.5)
When the Flames acquired Jay Bouwmeester last offseason, many predicted Calgary would send three defensemen to Olympics to play on Team Canada.
Bouwmeester and new teammate Robyn Regehr had already represented their country in the 2006 Olympics and Dion Phaneuf seemed like a lock to make the 2010 team back in August.
So when Steve Yzerman, Team Canada’s executive director, didn’t call any of the trio’s names at the selection press conference on Dec. 30, many people were shocked.
Not surprisingly, Calgary’s blueliners have been playing fantastic over the past two weeks. The Flames are killing penalties at a 91 percent clip and are 6-2 since Dec. 28.
Pick: Under
Nashville Predators at Vancouver Canucks (-175, 5.5)
The Canucks used to be known for little offense and a lot of defense but that hasn’t been the case lately. Vancouver is 7-1-1 and has outscored its opponents 36-15 since Dec. 22.
The offensive outburst has surprised many Vancouver backers because head coach Alian Vigneault has long been considered a defensive-minded bench boss.
“He's coaching the same way,” No. 1 center Henrik Sedin, who has 34 points in his last 19 games, told the Vancouver Sun. “When he took over, I think we were offensively challenged and we didn't have too many guys who were able to put up points.
“He knew, and I think we all knew, that we needed to win 2-1 and 1-0. That's how he built the team and the system and now we're playing exactly the same way. We just have more guys who can score.”
The Canucks are always tough to beat at GM Place (18-7) and Nashville is not sending a healthy squad to the Pacific Northwest.
Pick: Vancouver
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Originally Posted by spippen
