Colorado Avalanche vs Seattle Kraken Prediction: Will the reigning champions still clinch a trip to the second round?

Prediction for the NHL Colorado Avalanche vs Seattle Kraken match, which will take place on May 1. Check the team conditions and choose several betting options.

The Avalanche's problems in the series with the Kraken are primarily due to the absence of several key offensive players. Gabriel Landeskog is missing the playoffs; the situation is unclear with Valeriy Nichushkin, who has not played all the games in the series; Cale Makar was disqualified for the fifth game. For the sixth key game of the confrontation, Makar returned. As a result, Colorado secured a crucial 4:1 victory but left much energy behind. Will there be enough of them for the seventh game of this series?

The Kraken doesn't have stars like Nathan MacKinnon on their roster; moreover, Andre Burakovsky and Jonas Donskoi aren't playing in the playoffs. However, the limited personnel resource does not have a decisive impact on the course of the series for Seattle. The team has shown very well-organized hockey, with intelligent work on tempo and no shortage of power play for Colorado. In addition, the Kraken goaltender Philipp Grubauer, who previously played for Colorado, should be singled out. The German goalie has a 2.68 goals-against average per game and a 91.9% save percentage.

After the loss of Valeri Nichushkin, Colorado is essentially left with only one offensive-oriented unit. That means McKinnon, Lehkonen, and Rantanen will again have a huge workload in the upcoming game. And if you expect goals from the Avalanche, it will be from these hockey players. First, it will be McKinnon, who was very active in game five but had no scoring chances. There won't be many goals, even if Colorado's leaders play a super match. Seattle, in this series, perfectly copes with the problematic attack of the reigning champion, and at the same time, the Avalanche themselves are quite confident in defense. Let's bet on another total under.