Two of the top teams in the Western Conference will square off on Wednesday night when the Colorado Avalanche travel to Vancouver, British Columbia, to face the Vancouver Canucks at the Rogers Arena, with the game scheduled to start at 10:30 PM ET.

Nathan MacKinnon is one of the top players in the NHL this season. He enters this game fourth in goals with 42 and second in assists with 73 while leading the league in points with 115. MacKinnon’s play this season has put the Colorado Avalanche into a solid position to once again be one of the top teams in the Western Conference. They enter this game tied with the Winnipeg Jets for the third-best record in the conference at 41-20-5 and 87 points. 

The Avalanche have also been one of the highest-scoring teams in the league, ranking 1^st in scoring and 7^th in power-play success rate at 24.45%, while they average 3.71 goals per game. The Avalanche have also been on fire offensively during their current four-game winning streak, averaging five goals per game over the last four games, and Nathan MacKinnon continues his dominating play this season, accounting for four goals and eight assists in the previous four games for the Avalanche. 

The Avalanche have faced the Canucks twice this season so far and have dominated both games, winning both games by multiple goals with a 5-2 win in the first game at home and a 3-1 win at home in the 2^nd game. The Colorado Avalanche will look to make it three wins in a row against the Canucks and extend their winning streak to five games when they travel to face Vancouver for the first time this season on the road.

Vancouver enters this game on a hot streak, having won their last four games in a row to start the month after having a disappointing record in February at 5-9-2. This has put them back on top in the Western Conference again this season with an overall record of 42-17-7 and 91 points, tying them with the Boston Bruins for the second-best record in the NHL. 

Like the Avalanche, the Canucks have been helped out this season by their solid offensive play ranking 4^th in scoring with an average of 3.55 goals per game. However, Vancouver has been the better team defensively, as they allow an average of 2.7 goals per game, the 4^th fewest goal per game this season. Over their last four games, the Canucks have not allowed more than one goal and are coming off a 5-0 shutout win at home against one of the best teams in the conference, the Winnipeg Jets. 

The Vancouver Canucks will look to continue their strong defensive play and face a team that is playing on back-to-back nights when they face the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday night.

WagerWeb has the Vancouver Canucks listed as -115 moneyline favorites at home against the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday night. Colorado has won three straight against Vancouver, including the first two meetings this season, while having won the two games this season by an average margin of 2.5 goals per game at home.

Both teams enter this game on four-game winning streaks. However, Colorado has struggled on the road recently, having only won three of their last ten games on the road, and while the Avalanche won both meetings this season, both contests came at home. 

Vancouver has won 13 of their last 20 games in the series at home and is coming off three days of rest, while Colorado is playing on back-to-back nights on the road. As a result, I am taking the moneyline for the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday night.