Avalanche vs Kings Odds, Picks, and Predictions Tonight: Colorado and Los Angeles Engage in Offensive Track Meet

The Colorado Avalanche get their season started tonight when they travel to Crypto.com Arena to take on the Los Angeles Kings.

Despite being upset by the Seattle Kraken in the first round of the 2023 playoffs, the Avs come into this year as the favorites to win the Cup at +850 according to our NHL odds, though they could be missing a key player to start the season in Mikko Rantanen.

Colorado has dominated this matchup over the last few years, but can a revamped Los Angeles pull off the upset in their home opener? Keep reading our NHL picks for Avalanche vs. Kings to find out.

Avalanche vs Kings odds

Avalanche vs Kings predictions

After lifting the Cup in 2021-22, the Colorado Avalanche's 2022-23 season came to a shocking halt as they fell in the first round to the Kraken in their first-ever playoff appearance. Colorado should be back with a vengeance this season as most of the roster remains the same, albeit with some sneaky good pickups in the offseason.

The Avalanche acquired Ross Colton and Ryan Johansen while also signing Tomas Tatar and Jonathan Drouin to surround their one-two punch up front of Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen, who both racked up 100-plus points last season. Rantanen is dealing with a lower-body injury ahead of tonight’s contest but should take the ice for the season opener as he’s listed as probable.

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Kings also made a high-impact addition this offseason, sending three players and a pick to Winnipeg in exchange for winger Pierre-Luc Dubois. Dubois tallied a career-best 63 points last season and will be joining a forward core of Anze Kopitar (74 points), Kevin Fiala (72 points), and Adrian Kempe (67 points).

Needless to say, there will be plenty of talent on both sides of the ice, with both clubs looking to improve on last season's average of 3.34 goals per game. The goals are usually easy to come by in the early stages of the season, so I think we’ll see the Avs and Kings clear the Over on 6.5 tonight.

My best bet: Over 6.5 goals (+115 at DraftKings)

Avalanche vs Kings same-game parlay

Over 6.5 goals (-105)

Over 1.5 goals in the first period (-175)

Mikko Rantanen 2+ goals

+850 at DraftKings

We’ve got a juicy same-game parlay set up for tonight’s contest, coming in at +850 at DraftKings. Along with the Over on 6.5 goals and at least two total tallies in the opening frame, we’ll look for an Avalanche sniper to start his campaign with a multi-goal performance.

Rantanen kind of flew under the radar last season as he tallied 55 goals and 105 points — third among all skaters in goals behind only Connor McDavid (64) and David Pastrnak (61). The Avs sharpshooter finished last year with seven goals in his final eight regular-season games and added an incredible seven goals in the first round against the Kraken, so we’ll look for him to get off to a hot start in 2023-24 with a multi-goal outing.

Learn how to bet a same-game parlay with these helpful tips and strategies.

Avalanche vs Kings moneyline and Over/Under analysis

The oddsmakers are giving the hosts a lot of credit ahead of this matchup as the clubs opened at nearly identical odds, with the Avs coming in at -109 and the Kings getting -103 on the moneyline. Some books even have Los Angeles as the clear favorite by this morning, with the Kings as high as +111.

The clubs definitely trended in opposite directions last season, with Los Angeles taking a step forward and Colorado taking a step back, but I still think the 2021-22 Stanley Cup champions have the edge on paper — especially given their offseason moves.

Both Colorado and Los Angeles finished tied for 10th in the NHL with 3.34 GPG last year, but I think the Avs have done more to bolster their lineup with additions like Johansen and Colton. The Avalanche also have the three best players in this matchup in MacKinnon, Rantanen, and Cale Makar, who could easily combine for four or five goals on their own on any given night.

Tonight’s total opened at 6.0 and I think the Over is the clear play at that number. As mentioned, the clubs averaged well over 3.00 GPG each last year and we tend to see higher-scoring games early in the season. The Over has also cashed in four of the last five meetings between the two teams.

Avalanche vs Kings betting trend to know

Colorado is 11-2-1 in the last 14 meetings between these two clubs. Find more NHL betting trends for Avalanche vs. Kings.

Avalanche vs Kings game info

Avalanche vs Kings latest injuries

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