by Chuck Sommers
Sunday, Jan 15, 2023
Time: 5 p.m. ET
Venue: PNC Arena, Raleigh, NC
Where to watch: BSSO, SNP
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Hurricanes -255, Canucks +215
FanDuel: Hurricanes -280, Canucks +225
BetMGM: Hurricanes -250, Canucks +200
Caesars: Hurricanes -270, Canucks +215
Season record
Canucks: 17-22-3
Hurricanes: 27-9-7
We’ve hit the halfway mark in the NHL season. Yes, you read that right. We’re really hit that halfway mark that quickly. If you blinked, you probably missed a lot of good things happen in the hockey world. And with football about to be out of the way, look for our champion handicappers to get back on the rink. Oskeim Sports is on a 13-5-0 run in the NHL over the last 30 days, as is Will Rogers. Sean Murphy has also cashed in with a 16-10-0 run in the last month. Make sure you’re following our champion handicappers at bigal.com to get on this winning action!
Canucks - Hurricanes preview, prediction and analysis
Recent results
Canucks: lost 4-3 at Panthers
Hurricanes: won 2-1 vs. Penguins
The Carolina Hurricanes will look to keep the good times rolling for a third straight win when they host the struggling Vancouver Canucks at PNC Arena on Sunday in Raleigh.
The Hurricanes, without question the hottest team in the league outside of Boston over the last month, is coming off a 2-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday, in large part due to the play of Frederik Andersen. The star goalie won his second straight start after missing 29 games with a lower-body injury.
Brady Skjei and Jalen Chatfield scored for Carolina, who improved to 27-9-7 on the year and continue to make a claim as one of the best teams in the NHL.
"I'll take the two wins for sure," Andersen said. "You've got to keep building on just feeling good. Anyone who has been out longer periods of time will tell you they miss everything about playing and being part of the group, so it feels good to be back."
The Hurricanes were in need of some strong play after losing four straight. Those losses were a wide range. Two to two of the top teams in the league, the Rangers and Devils, and then a shootout loss to Columbus and a 64-save clinic from Juuse Saros and Nashville.
But with wins over Columbus and now Pittsburgh, the Hurricanes are seemingly getting things back on track. The hope was that the arrival of Max Pacioretty would add to that, but his lower-body injury sustained last week has him as day-to-day for now, but fantasy owners (like myself) are of course annoyed.
But at least the Hurricanes aren’t bad off like the Canucks are right now. Four straight losses, seven losses in eight games, there’s nothing going right for this team. During this losing streak, the Canucks are being outscored 21-15. Good news: They’re getting goals. Bad news: They’re giving up way too many goals and are gasping for air.
The Canucks are coming off a 4-3 loss to the Florida Panthers on Saturday and will also be playing the second night of a back-to-back. Elias Pettersson had two assists, and Spencer Martin made 31 saves in another effort to try and fill in as the stopgap for Thatcher Demko, but they just can’t find a way to win on the road.
"I'm just kind of sick of it," Vancouver forward J.T. Miller said. "We need to find a way to man up and do the job tomorrow. I'm glad we don't get that much time to think about it, playing one of the best teams, probably one of the hardest back-to-backs of the year, so we need to be ready or it's going to be ugly."
With the Canucks losing seven of eight, the one area I look at is the total. The over has hit in four of the last six (4-0-2) with the two pushes coming in the last five games. But the fact the total still hit six and seven, respectfully, seems very bad.
Prediction
If I’m you, I don’t touch the Canucks with a 39.5-foot pole. Even if the Hurricanes are down Pacioretty, they still have a ton of firepower to make up for a lack of offense, knowing the Canucks will give up a ton the other way. Hurricanes 5, Canucks 2
Betting trends
Hurricanes are 38-14 in their last 52 home games.
Over is 6-1 in Hurricanes last 7 games.
Canucks are 0-5 in their last five meetings in Carolina.
The home team is 20-7 in the last 27 meetings.
Projected lines
Canucks:
Andrei Kuzmenko -- Elias Pettersson -- Brock Boeser
Conor Garland -- Bo Horvat -- J.T. Miller
Dakota Joshua -- Curtis Lazar -- William Lockwood
Ilya Mikheyev -- Sheldon Dries -- Jack Studnicka
Quinn Hughes -- Luke Schenn
Oliver Ekman-Larsson -- Tyler Myers
Riley Stillman -- Ethan Bear
Collin Delia
Hurricanes:
Teuvo Teravainen -- Sebastian Aho -- Seth Jarvis
Andrei Svechnikov -- Paul Stastny -- Martin Necas
Jordan Martinook -- Jordan Staal -- Jesper Fast
Derek Stepan -- Jesperi Kotkaniemi -- Stefan Noesen
Jaccob Slavin -- Brent Burns
Brady Skjei -- Brett Pesce
Jalen Chatfield -- Calvin de Haan
Pyotr Kochetkov
Statistical leaders
Canucks:
Points: Elias Pettersson – 52
Goals: Bo Horvat – 30
Assists: Elias Pettersson – 34
Goalie: Spencer Martin – 11-10-1, 3.76 GAA, .880 SV%
Hurricanes:
Points: Martin Necas – 39
Goals: Andrei Svechnikov – 19
Assists: Sebastian Aho – 23
Goalie: Pyotr Kochetkov – 10-4-4, 2.30 GAA, .914 SV%
Don't miss our champion handicappers' free picks and expert hockey picks today. And if you enjoyed this Vancouver Canucks - Carolina Hurricanes prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our daily NHL projections and previews.
Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
