Avalanche a Clear Favorite vs Flames on Monday Night

What: Calgary Flames vs Colorado Avalanche
When: Monday, December 11th, 9:30 PM EST
Where: Ball Arena, Denver

The Central Division-leading Colorado Avalanche will be hoping to keep it rolling on Monday night when they host the slumping Calgary Flames at Ball Arena. The puck is scheduled to drop at 9:30 PM EST. Colorado is looking like a Stanley Cup contender again but they have dropped back-to-back games, losing to the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday by a score of 5-2. Calgary also lost last time out, falling 4-2 to the New Jersey Devils. Both teams will surely be looking to get back on track. Below, find our Flames vs Avalanche picks.

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Flames vs Avalanche Odds

Team
Calgary Flames	+156	+155	+155
Colorado Avalanche	-175	-180	-175

The Avs are a clear home favorite on Monday with -175 moneyline odds. The Flames come back at +156. The total is set at 6.5. It's important to note the under has been hit in three straight meetings, with Colorado winning all of them. In fact, the Avalanche are 5-1 in their last six against Calgary.

Flames Continue to Struggle

Calgary is only two games below .500 with an 11-13-3 record, which is good enough for fourth place in the Pacific Division. However, it's hard to even look at this group as a playoff contender. There aren't a whole lot of bright spots, with the Flames ranking 23rd in goals scored (2.89) and 21st in fewest goals allowed (3.33). In no particular area is Calgary making their presence felt.

The Flames are 5-5-0 in their last 10 outings and have lost three of the previous four. After grabbing an impressive 3-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday, they failed to replicate that performance on Saturday at home against New Jersey, losing 4-2. Yegor Sharanhovich opened the scoring in the first period but the Devils responded with three unanswered goals. Nazem Kadri added another to make it close in the third period, but it was too little too late.

To put Calgary's offensive struggles into perspective, not one player has hit 10 goals so far in 2023-24. Elias Lindholm and Blake Coleman have both scored seven times apiece, but that's the best on the team. Kadri leads the Flames with six goals and 12 assists for 18 points. Perhaps the most disappointing player has been Jonathan Huberdeau, who came over in the Matthew Tkachuk trade from the Florida Panthers before last season. He only has four goals and 11 assists through 15 games after a dismal debut campaign in 2022-23. Calgary really needs Huberdeau to find his best as he did in Florida. Because at the moment, they're a terrible loser in that blockbuster.

Are Avs For Real?

It was only two years ago the Avalanche won a Cup and although last season resulted in a shocking first-round exit, it appears Colorado is on track to be a serious contender come playoff time. The Avs are first in the Central with a 16-9-2 record, with the Dallas Stars and Winnipeg Jets right on their heels. Jared Bednar's group is very solid on both ends of the ice, sitting seventh in goals scored with 3.44 and also only allowing 3.0 per contest.

Mikko Rantanen is proving to be the star of the show in Denver with a team-high 12 goals and 19 assists. But, you can't ignore Nathan MacKinnon's 37 points, setting up 26 and scoring 11 of his own. Rantanen, MacKinnon, and Cale Makar have all surpassed the 30-point mark already. While there could be a little more balance throughout all of their lines, it's clear Colorado has a very reliable core that helped them win it all in 2021-22.

That being said, the Avs are in a rut right now. The Flyers exposed them over the weekend after also losing to a divisional rival in the Jets only two days before. Colorado has only scored four times across the last two games while conceding nine. That's very unlike the Avalanche, therefore you can expect them to respond on Monday at home, where they own an impressive 9-4-0 record. Good teams make adjustments.

Flames vs Avalanche Picks

I don't see the Avs dropping another, especially at Ball Arena. They will continue their winning ways against the Flames. Take the moneyline here.

Avalanche moneyline Vs Flames

-175

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