The Vancouver Canucks will be looking to bounce back from a Game 2 loss at home when they hit the road to face the Nashville Predators in Game 3 on Friday evening. The puck is scheduled to drop at 7:30 PM ET. Nashville snatched a dominant 4-1 victory on Tuesday to even up the series, a huge outcome considering they were playing at Rogers Arena. The next two games will be in Nashville. Continue reading for the Canucks vs Predators Game 3 picks.
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There’s no clear favorite in Game 3. Both teams sit at -110 odds to win. The Preds do have a slight advantage on the puck line, however. Vancouver won all three meetings with Nashville in the 2023-24 regular season.
Vancouver was dealt a devastating blow ahead of Game 2, with netminder Thatcher Demko suffering an undisclosed injury. He’s currently listed as week-to-week and his status for the remainder of this series and the playoffs as a whole remains in doubt. The Canucks haven’t said what the injury is, but the All-Star did travel with the team to Nashville. That’s a good sign in itself.
But, you could see how much Vancouver missed him in Game 2. Casey DeSmith stepped in for Demko and struggled immensely to keep the Preds out of his net, conceding three goals on 15 shots. The last one was an empty netter. Demko is one of the best keepers in the NHL and being without him is absolutely brutal for the Canucks. To be honest, it may be the difference between them advancing in the postseason. Needless to say, DeSmith needs to be a mile better when he’s in between the posts moving forward.
In fairness though, Vancouver’s offense didn’t do much in Game 2. They had a mere 18 shots and went 0 for 4 on the power play. Most notably, their main guys like Quinn Hughes, Elias Pettersson, and Elias Lindholm all finished with a negative plus-minus. That’s a prime example of how poor the Canucks were. This is one of the best offenses in the league and they need to deliver in Game 3, especially when their goaltender isn’t nearly as strong as Demko.
The Canucks have some wild fans, so it’s not an easy environment to play in. But, the Predators took the energy out of Rogers Arena on Tuesday. Anthony Beauvillier opened the scoring in the first period courtesy of a Filip Forsberg assist before Forsberg scored the second goal. Colton Sissons also got on the scoresheet while Kiefer Sherwood scored the last one in an empty net. Although Nashville only had 16 shots, they clearly capitalized on their opportunities.
Nashville just barely got into the playoffs, finishing in fourth place in the Central Division with a 47-30-5 record, sneaking in as a Wild Card. They’re a well-rounded team though, ranking 10th in goals scored and 13th in fewest goals allowed. Forsberg was the leading catalyst all year, scoring 48 times and assisting 46 for a total of 94 points. Roman Josi, Gustav Nyquist, and Ryan O’Reilly are consistent pieces, too.
The Predators had a 23-16-2 record during the regular season at Bridgestone Arena and actually played better on the road. Nevertheless, this is playoff hockey and they will definitely be looking to ride the momentum from Game 2 by putting together a solid performance in front of their fans. Even in Game 1, Nashville outplayed the Canucks before the hosts scored three goals in the third period of the series opener. The Predators have more or less looked good.
I have little belief in DeSmith. While I don’t think the Canucks will lose the series in the end, the Predators will win Game 3 on home ice and manage to expose the Vancouver netminder for a second game in a row.
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