Golden Knights vs. Coyotes Odds
| Golden Knights Odds | -180 |
| Coyotes Odds | +150 |
| Over / Under | 6 -110 / -110 |
Here's everything you need to know about the Vegas Golden Knights vs. Arizona Coyotes on Friday, April 5 – our expert NHL prediction and pick.
The league's two desert teams will go head-to-head at Mullett Arena as part of a six-game slate Friday. It will be the deciding game of a long home stand in which Arizona has gone 3-3 so far, but is now carrying a two-game losing streak. After eking out seven of a possible eight points on their most recent road trip, the Golden Knights beat Vancouver 6-3 on home ice Tuesday, and are now kicking off another three-game road swing.
The visitors have won both games to date in the season series between these two teams. Arizona prevailed 2-0 at T-Mobile Arena on Nov. 25, and Vegas replied with a 3-2 victory at the Mullett on Feb. 8.
Let's break down why bettors should look for the road side to complete the series sweep in our Golden Knights vs. Coyotes prediction and pick.
Vegas Golden Knights
Much like last season, the defending Stanley Cup champions appear to be rounding into form at just the right time. Since the trade deadline, the Golden Knights are 9-2-1. They're now just three points away from grabbing home-ice advantage from second-place Edmonton in the Pacific Division, although Vegas has played one additional game.
This year, Noah Hanifin and Anthony Mantha are the trade-deadline pickups whose arrivals have coincided with the team's positive turn.
Playing on both the first power-play unit and first penalty kill, Hanifin's 22:51 of average ice time is tops on the entire team since his Mar. 7 debut; so is his plus-8 rating, and he has also chipped in six points.
Mantha has settled in nicely on a line with William Karlsson and Pavel Dorofeyev, and has eight points in 13 games with Vegas so far, seven of which have come at even strength.
The final piece of the puzzle, Tomáš Hertl, has been skating following early-February knee surgery. But coach Bruce Cassidy confirmed Thursday the 30-year-old would not be making his debut with his new team against the Coyotes. Nicolas Roy is also unlikely to be available after suffering a minor injury in Tuesday's 6-3 win over the Vancouver Canucks, and William Carrier and Mark Stone remain sidelined up front.
Between the pipes, Logan Thompson has been fantastic since Adin Hill went down with a lower-body injury about two weeks ago. Thompson has gone 4-0-0 and given up just six goals in those four starts, boosting his save percentage for the year to .911 and his goals saved above expected to 8.3.
The Golden Knights' schedule this week is relatively light; their last game was against the Canucks on Tuesday and they won't play again until they see those same Canucks in Vancouver on Monday. So Jiri Patera could get the call in Tempe. He took a 5-4 overtime loss in Nashville on Mar. 26 and is 1-3-1 with the big club this year.
Looking at the Golden Knights' team stats since the trade deadline, they're tied for the ninth-fewest goals allowed heading into Thursday's action at 2.53 goals per game. They're also tied for ninth in scoring at 3.5 goals per game. Vegas's biggest strength is its 5-on-5 play, controlling 55.29% of expected goals. Surprisingly, the power play is a bit of a weakness, clicking at just 15.6%.
Arizona Coyotes
With Arizona more than 20 points out of a playoff position, it's another lost year for the Desert Dogs, who were sellers at the trade deadline. They've actually been OK since then, with a record of 6-6-0, but dropped their last two games of the home stand with an 8-4 loss to the New York Rangers last Saturday and a 2-1 defeat by Vancouver on Wednesday.
Interestingly, the Coyotes have actually been scoring a bit more than Vegas since the trade deadline, averaging 3.58 goals per game — in part, because their 21.4% power play is clicking at a higher rate. But they're also giving up more at 3.25 goals a game. Additionally, their penalty kill is a grim 73.5% and their expected goals share at 5-on-5 is near the bottom of the league at 44.1%.
With younger players like Clayton Keller, Logan Cooley and Dylan Guenther starting to infuse more skill into Arizona's lineup, the team is playing a bit more wide open and generating more offense. But that's also creating more opportunity for opponents.
Coach André Tourigny has been splitting his goaltending assignments pretty much down the middle lately, which means Karel Vejmelka should draw in on Friday. He's at -3.2 goals saved above expected for the year, but saw a three-game winning streak snapped when he gave up six against the Rangers last weekend.
Arizona is a little thin down the middle right now, with Barrett Hayton and Travis Boyd sidelined with injuries.
Golden Knights vs. Coyotes
Betting Pick & Prediction
In the NHL, any team can win on any given night. But while the Coyotes have strung together some victories lately, the only team they've beaten that's in a solid playoff position is Nashville. Their last four losses have been against the Stars (twice), the Rangers and the Canucks. So they're likely going to be in tough against a Golden Knights team that's playing superb hockey right now.
At -175 on the opening moneyline, the oddsmakers are giving Vegas implied odds of winning of 63.64%. That's pretty substantial — but still feels a bit low.
The return for a puck-line bet is pretty juicy, and well-supported by the data in this situation. Look for Vegas to keep on rolling.
Pick: Golden Knights -1.5 (+145 at PointsBet | Bet to +110)
