NHL Previews Today

Nathan MacKinnon is on a mission. With 120 points on the season (49 goals, 71 assists) and sitting just four points behind Connor McDavid in the Art Ross race, every single game from here on out carries enormous individual significance for Colorado's superstar center. The Avalanche (49-14-10, 108 points) have already clinched a playoff berth and sit comfortably atop the Central Division, but don't mistake that security for complacency. MacKinnon has been playing with an intensity that suggests the Art Ross Trophy is very much his primary objective down the stretch, and tonight's matchup against the league's worst team is exactly the kind of game where he can close the gap in a hurry. He's been on a tear lately, with Colorado winning five of their last six and coming off a 9-2 demolition of Calgary that felt like a statement of intent.

Vancouver (21-44-8, 50 points) is living through the worst season in franchise history, and there's no sugarcoating how bad things have gotten on the West Coast. The Canucks have lost six straight, their 50 points through 73 games is a historically awful pace, and the vibes around this organization have cratered to a level that makes next season's rebuild feel like a welcome relief. Kevin Lankinen has been hung out to dry behind a porous defense all year, posting an 8-23-5 record with a 3.62 GAA and an .876 save percentage that tells you everything about what the poor guy has been dealing with. Vancouver isn't coming into Ball Arena with any realistic expectation of winning this game, and the -435 moneyline confirms the market feels the same way.

Colorado will be without Cale Makar, who's dealing with an upper-body injury, and that's the one wrinkle that keeps this game from being a total afterthought. Makar is one of the best defensemen on the planet, and his absence from the lineup changes the complexion of the Avalanche's transition game and power play significantly. The good news for Colorado is that Scott Wedgewood has been absolutely magnificent this season, posting a 16-1-4 record with a 2.01 GAA and a .924 save percentage that makes him one of the most efficient goalies in the league. Wedgewood, or potentially Mackenzie Blackwood, will be between the pipes tonight, and either option gives the Avs a massive advantage in net over whatever Vancouver throws out there.

The 6.5 total is worth watching closely. Colorado has the offensive firepower to push this game well over by themselves, especially with MacKinnon hunting points and the supporting cast riding a wave of confidence after that Calgary blowout. Vancouver's defense has been a sieve all season, allowing goals at a rate that would make most coaches lose sleep, and the altitude factor at Ball Arena only compounds the problem for visiting teams. The Canucks' legs tend to get heavy in the third period in Denver, and that's when the Avalanche's depth really takes over. The puck line at COL -1.5 (-177) is the most interesting number here, because Colorado hasn't just been winning games lately, they've been winning them emphatically. Against the league's worst team, a multi-goal victory feels more like an expectation than a stretch.

This is the game of the night, and it isn't even close. Two teams fighting for their playoff lives, national television spotlight on TNT, and every single point feeling like it could be the difference between postseason hockey and a long summer of regret. The Los Angeles Kings (27-24-15, 69 points) sit just one point behind Nashville for the second Wild Card spot in the Western Conference, while the St. Louis Blues (31-31-11, 73 points) are four points outside looking in. Both teams know what's at stake, and the desperation level in this building is going to be off the charts. This is the kind of game that defines seasons, and one of these teams is going to walk out of Crypto.com Arena with renewed hope while the other takes a devastating blow to their playoff aspirations.

Here's the thing about St. Louis that the market might be undervaluing: the Blues have been one of the hottest teams in hockey over the past few weeks. They've collected points in 12 of their last 14 games and won four of their last five, which is the kind of surge that transforms a team's identity in the final weeks of the season. And the biggest reason for that surge has a name: Joel Hofer. The young goaltender has been absolutely absurd since the Olympic break, going 7-0-2 with a 1.29 GAA and a .959 save percentage that is the best in the entire league during that stretch. When your goalie is stopping everything in sight, you've got a chance to beat anyone, and Hofer has given the Blues the kind of backstop performance that turns fringe playoff teams into legitimate threats. Getting +125 on the road with a goalie playing at that level is the kind of number that makes you sit up and take notice.

Los Angeles has the home-ice advantage and the -143 price tag, but let's be honest about what this Kings team actually is: they've been terrible at home. A 10-17-8 record at Crypto.com Arena is one of the worst home marks in the Western Conference, and that's not the kind of foundation you want to build a playoff push on. Kevin Fiala's absence on injured reserve takes a significant piece of the Kings' offensive puzzle off the board, and while Anze Kopitar continues to will this team forward in what is expected to be his final NHL season, there's only so much one player can do when the supporting cast isn't holding up its end. The February acquisition of Artemi Panarin from the Rangers was supposed to be the move that pushed LA over the top, but the results at home haven't matched the talent on paper.

The 5.5 total is set low, and it should be. Both of these teams are going to play like their seasons depend on the outcome, because they do. Expect tight checking, conservative neutral zone play, and every loose puck being contested like it's Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals. Hofer's recent form suggests the Blues will keep this close regardless of how the game flows, and the Kings don't have the offensive depth to blow the doors off anyone right now, especially without Fiala in the lineup. This has the feel of a 2-1 or 3-2 game that comes down to the final five minutes, and in a contest that tight, the goaltender who blinks first is going to send his team home with a loss that stings for the rest of the offseason. The Wild Card race is absolutely brutal right now, and this is the epicenter of it.