Colorado Keeps Playoff Hopes Alive with Game 5 Win

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00:00And what a game it was. Series clinching scenario for Dallas. The Avs on the brink of elimination

00:10as we went back to Dallas in game five. The Stars were booked as a minus 144 home money

00:16line favorite. Took an early 2-1 lead. Beat before everything turned. Colorado wins game

00:22number five. Keeps this series afloat and their season alive with a 5-3 win. How did

00:29the Avs turn things around last night in Dallas? Well, it was the bread and butter, right?

00:35It was the Cal McCars, Nathan McKinnons, Miko Rantanens. They had all been quiet in the

00:39series up until that point. But do or die scenario, you know, Valerie Nichuskin kind

00:46of let the team down in that he's not with the team for the second straight year. He's

00:51suspended in the NHL, NHLPA player assistance program. Hopefully he gets on track for the

00:57future. But for here and now, Colorado does not have as much depth as it did in its championship

01:03year in 2022. Huge performance, I thought, from a secondary scorer, Arturi Lekin, and

01:09especially that buzzer beater at the end of the first period. I mean, it was so important

01:13for the Avs to keep the momentum going and answer back when Dallas scored. And they were

01:19able to do that in a monster third period by the Avs to just remind everybody that those

01:24champions from two years ago, they're not going down without a fight here.

01:28Take a look at that series pricing. Now, as we look here, it looks like the favorite is

01:34before to Dallas is the series finale to plus one or two price. But if we're looking just

01:38on Moneyline and who can win it here, it's still decided advantage here for the Dallas

01:43stars. Is that what you're seeing on your side here, Pete? Is there a legitimate chance

01:47that the avalanche with Mac and Mac out there, McCar and McKinnon can come back and win this

01:51bad boy? There's definitely a chance. I mean, they've been arguably the best home team

01:58in the league in the regular season. They were like thirty one and ten somehow between

02:03injuries. Devon Tavis was out with the illness. He came back for game five. That was huge

02:08for Colorado. And I mentioned the Natushkin absence in game four and five, and he's done

02:13for the rest of the season. So, I mean, those were back breaking to the avalanche. That's

02:18why they lost the two home games so far in the series. But when you look big picture

02:23and say Dallas, arguably the deepest team left standing in the playoffs right now, they're

02:28only three and four at home in the playoffs. That's a problem. And to me, the fact that

02:33Colorado has won two out of three games in Big D makes me think that they would have

02:39the motivation. They would have the confidence to do it again if it goes the distance and

02:44goes to game seven. So, I think Colorado, whether it's on the live line or the puck

02:48line in game six or maybe even game seven, if they get that far, they're certainly live

02:53to win the series. We head to Denver tomorrow night in game number six. We're at the moment.

03:00The avalanche are a slight home ice favorite. Pete, the Western Conference very much up

03:07in the air. Dallas still holds that three to series advantage over Colorado. But the

03:12Avs, of course, as we share, keep their season afloat. In the other set, it was expected

03:19to be easy for Edmonton. It has been anything but. That series tied at two games apiece

03:26as we get ready for game number five tonight in Vancouver. Here are the Western Conference

03:31title odds at this moment. Pete, do you have any idea who's going to emerge out of the

03:36West when all is said and done?

03:38Yeah, it's going to be interesting, right, to see who Edmonton plays in game five after

03:44Calvin Picker got them over the hump and back to tie the series. The NHL journeyman with

03:50a huge performance in his first playoff game of his career. So, I think maybe they go with

03:55the hot hand there, but Stuart Skinner got them to this point after the coaching change.

04:00Remember that correlated with a bounce back for Skinner after the slow start to the season

04:05and they've turned back to him in years past. I remember they did it last year. So, I think

04:09that they would probably go back to Skinner at some point if they do lose a game to Vancouver.

04:15But Vancouver has dominated this season series. Only one regulation victory for the Oilers

04:21in eight tries against Vancouver this season. So, that kind of is hanging over their head

04:27a little bit. Edmonton did have the road win in game two in Vancouver in overtime, but

04:33still, this has been heavily in Vancouver's favor. And to me, the five-on-five goal battle

04:39is so huge. We know Edmonton can work it on the power play. We know they have the three

04:43highest scoring players in the playoffs this season with Drysaddle, McDavid, and Bouchard,

04:49but show me what you got at five-on-five. Otherwise, Vancouver might win this thing.

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