Canucks vs. Bruins prediction, odds, pick

The Boston Bruins haven’t started the season like they thought they would after signing Nikita Zadorov and Elias Lindholm to free-agent deals in the offseason. However, the team believes the recent firing of Jim Montgomery and Jeremy Swayman’s increased reps after his holdout will get the team back on track. Meanwhile, the Canucks are an impressive 10-6-3 after losing the previously-mentioned Zadorov and Lindholm and being without Thatcher Demko since the start of the season with an injury. It’s time to continue our NHL odds series with a Canucks-Bruins prediction and pick.

Here are the Canucks-Bruins NHL odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

NHL Odds: Canucks-Bruins Odds

Vancouver Canucks: +1.5 (-250)

Moneyline: +105

Boston Bruins: -1.5 (+205)

Moneyline: -125

Over: 5.5 (-110)

Under: 5.5 (-110)

How To Watch Canucks vs. Bruins

Time: 7 PM ET/4 PM PT

TV: Sportsnet, NESN

Stream: fuboTV (Free Trial)

Why the Canucks Could Cover the Spread/Win

The Canucks haven’t been in top form recently, as they’ve lost three of their past five games. A massive reason has been the play of their goaltenders, as they’ve allowed three or more goals in four of those meetings. The Canucks received some good news recently when they announced that Demko would join the team on the road trip and likely see some game action. It isn’t guaranteed that Demko will make his season debut on Tuesday night, but their goaltending situation will be worth monitoring throughout the day.

Demko playing won’t be the only reason the Canucks can win this game. Kevin Lankinen had a shaky start to the year but has been better recently, owning a 9-3-2 record with a 2.74 goals-against average and a .901 save percentage. With the Bruins’ recent defensive changes and a goaltending matchup that will feature two above-average puck-stoppers this season, it isn’t difficult to see why the total is set at 5.5.

Why the Bruins Could Cover the Spread/Win

The start of the Joe Sacco era for the Bruins couldn’t have gone better after they won their first two games 2-1 and 1-0. Offseason acquisition Joonas Korpisalo recorded a 22-save shutout against the Utah Hockey Club in Sacco’s debut, while Swayman followed that performance with a 19-save win against the Detroit Red Wings. Sacco’s strategy with the Bruins seems to be to play a sound defensive game, limit shot opportunities for the other team, and out-defense their opponents instead of trying to outscore them. Montgomery was a highly offensive coach, which would never work with this roster construction.

Sacco clarified that the goaltending rotation would be determined not by salary or place in the organization but by how the respective goalies performed. After signing that massive contract at the start of the season, Swayman will be the Bruins’ goaltender of the future, but that doesn’t mean he won’t have to be a tandem with Korpisalo for the time being. Korpisalo recorded a shutout at his last start, and after giving Swayman the next game, there’s a good chance Sacco will return to the newest netminder.

Final Canucks-Bruins Prediction & Pick

Boston’s offense doesn’t have the firepower to win games 6-5, so the real question for them is if they can keep up this defensive play under Sacco or slowly start to fade back to where they were under Montgomery. The Canucks thrive on high-scoring games, evidenced by their last three games having both teams score more than three goals. Vancouver will find a way to beat Korpisalo in this matchup, but Boston won’t keep up.

Final Canucks-Bruins Prediction & Pick: Canucks ML (+105)