Avalanche vs Kings Predictions, Odds & Best Bets for Opening Night

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The Avalanche are -118 moneyline favorites over the Kings on Opening Night in the NHL
LA led the league in expected goals against last season, and ranked fourth in high danger scoring chances against
See my Avalanche vs Kings predictions below, plus odds and best bets for Opening Night

The puck drops on a new NHL season tonight, with a trio of games. The nightcap features the Avalanche versus Kings in LA, in a matchup that I expect to underwhelm on the scoresheet.

Action is set to get underway at 10:30 pm ET from the crypto.com Arena, in Los Angeles, CA, with ESPN providing the broadcast coverage.

Avalanche vs Kings Odds

Colorado is currently a -118 moneyline favorite and is laying 1.5 goals on the puck line at +215 odds. LA comes back as a -102 underdog, while the total currently sits at 6 over at BetMGM.

Odds as of Oct. 7th at BetMGM. Check out the BetMGM promo code for a bonus to bet on the NHL tonight.

Per the NHL odds, the total opened up at 5.5 for this contest, but a flurry of over money moved it to 6 at some books. You can still find it at 5.5 if you want to bet the over, but there’s plenty of reasons to believe this will be a low scoring affair.

Avalanche vs Kings Predictions

My Avalanche vs Kings prediction is going to lean into the defensive prowess of both teams. Let’s start in net, where Scott Wedgewood will start for Colorado, and LA will counter with Vezina Trophy odds finalist Darcy Kuemper. The ladder was second last season in goals against average and third in save percentage, posting a 31-11-7 mark.

Wedgewood meanwhile, would have led the league in GAA (1.99) if he played enough games, but as the backup to Mackenzie Blackwood, he started only 19 contests.

Nevertheless, Wedgewood was terrific when he was between the pipes posting a 13-4-1 record. He recorded a .917 save percentage away from home, winning eight of 12 starts.

Both teams are terrific defensively in front of their netminders, which is another reason to like the under tonight. Los Angeles led the league in expected goals against last season, and bolstered their blueline over the summer. They brought in veterans Codi Ceci and Brian Dumoulin to shore up the backend, and will have a healthy Drew Doughty to start the season.

Avalanche vs Kings 2024-25 Advanced Stats

Colorado added veteran Brent Burns to their blueline in the offseason, and he’ll make a big impact at both ends. The Avs finished the 2024-25 season ranked top-12 in both expected goals against and high danger scoring chances against, and should be able to shut down a mediocre LA offensive attack.

Avalanche vs Kings Best Bets

If the Kings are going to morph into a legit Stanley Cup odds contender, their offense is going to have to significantly outperform expectation. LA did little to improve its scoring punch after finishing in the middle of the pact in expected goals for a season ago. Anze Kopitar is starting his retirement tour, and has seen a decline in production in back-to-back seasons.

Adrian Kempe was the only Kings player to eclipse 67 points in 2024-25, while the team produced just five 20-goal scorers. On paper, the Colorado lineup is much more dangerous with Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar leading the charge, but the team was never able to fully replace the production that Mikko Rantanen left behind.

As talented as the big name Avalanche players are, Colorado was outside the top-13 in high danger scoring chances last season. You’re not going to beat Kuemper very often from long range or poor shooting angles, and I trust LA’s defense to keep the Avs away from the scoring zone.

This game profiles as a tight-checking, low scoring affair for me. That makes under 6 goals my Avalanche vs Kings best bet, and I’d also consider taking a sprinkle of YES on “will this game go to OT” at +290.

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