This article is part of our NHL Picks series.
NHL Picks: Edmonton Oilers 
at
Vancouver Canucks 
Game 7 NHL Best Bets and Player Props, May 20
The Edmonton Oilers and the Vancouver Canucks square off in Game 7 of their Western Conference second-round series on Monday night. Puck drop is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET at Rogers Arena, and the game can be viewed or streamed on ESPN.
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It's sad when something good comes to an end. The holiday season, the Olympics, your child graduating from school and moving out. Wait, that last one sounds amazing. However, it's going to be sad when this third-ever playoff meeting between the Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks comes to a close. This series has been epic, with so many storylines.
Game 7 certainly has some storylines, and they're mostly not good for Vancouver. Brock Boeser, who is tied for the team lead with 12 points in this postseason, will miss Game 7 due to a blood-clotting issue, and he is out indefinitely, should the Canucks advance.
In addition, All-Star Thatcher Demko (knee) has missed the entire series due to a knee injury. There were reports earlier in the series that he might be ready by Game 4 or 5, but those reports were obviously way off. Head coach Rick Tocchet ruled Demko out for Game 7, so it appears he'll run it back with Arturs Silovs for the decisive playoff game.
Vancouver wouldn't have made it this far without Silovs (5-4-0, 2.89 GAA, .898 SV%, 1 SO - 2024 postseason), who has sparkled at times in this postseason. No one will forget his 28-save shutout in Game 6 in Nashville to close the door on the first round. But he has had his hands full with the Oilers, allowing three or more goals in five of the six games, including an alarming five goals allowed on just 27 shots in Game 6 at Edmonton.
Meanwhile, head coach Kris Knoblauch went with career backup Calvin Pickard for Game 4 and Game 5. The results were pretty good, as Pickard won his first-ever playoff start at age 32, as the New Brunswick native stopped 19 of 21 shots in Game 4 at home. He wasn't awful in Game 5, stopping 32 of 35 shots, but he did allow a late goal to J.T. Miller for the game-winning tally.
Apparently, that was enough for Knoblauch, as he shifted gears back to All-Star Stuart Skinner. That move was the right one, as Skinner allowed just one goal on 15 shots in the 5-1 victory by the Oilers.
Skinner (6-3-0, 2.97 GAA, .881 SV%, 1 SO - 2024 postseason) is the right man for the job, as you have to dance with the one who brought you, barring injuries, which make you use a third-string Latvian tendy.
Five of the first six games in this series were decided by a single goal, with Game 6 as the exception. Edmonton is hungry to get that monkey off its back, and get to the Western Conference Finals against Dallas. Vancouver is hungry, too, but with Boeser sidelined, a rookie goaltender looking awfully shaky last time out, etc., it looks like this is Oilers all the way. The only reason for concern is that the game is in Vancouver. If not, it would be all-in on Edmonton.
The safe play is Canucks on the puck line, catching a goal and a half.
NHL Moneyline Bets for Oilers at Canucks
- Canucks PL (+1.5, -198 at DraftKings)
Looking to the total, we've had a rather predictable series in that respect.
The first three games featured an average of 7.7 combined goals per game. The offense was much more wide-open, and we had fire-wagon hockey at times. The Over cashed in each of those outings.
However, in the past three games, we have seen the average drop down to 5.4 goals per game, including a pair of 3-2 results. In Game 6, Edmonton won 5-1 for a push, as Evander Kane scored with 13:04 to go in the final period to put a bow on the scoring. But the Under is 2-0-1 in the past three outings.
As a series goes on, scoring tends to go down, as familiarity comes into play, as well as an increase in hitting, physicality, etc. Teams tend to take fewer chances the closer we get to elimination, too, and it gets no closer than a Game 7.
We've had two Game 7s played in the 2024 postseason, with both resulting in 2-1 scores. The Boston Bruins polished off the Toronto Maple Leafs 2-1 at home in OT, and the Dallas Stars edged the Vegas Golden Knights 2-1 at home, too.
The Under is actually 5-0 in the past five Game 7s dating back to the first round of 2023, and the Under is 12-3 in the past 15 Games 7s since the Semifinals of the 2021 postseason.
NHL Totals Bets for Edmonton Oilers at Vancouver Canucks
- Under 5.5 (+105 at Caesars)
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NHL Player Props for Edmonton Oilers at Vancouver Canucks
Looking to the props, we're going to avoid Anytime Goal Scorers (AGS), as goals should be at a premium. However, we'll still likely see plenty of attempts at offense, so let's go high on a couple of props.
For the visitors, Zach Hyman is a good bet to go Over on shots on goal. He had four shots on goal (SOG) in Game 6, and he notched the game-winning goal to snap a three-game scoring drought. He has four or more shots in four of the six games in this series. You must get all of the SOG in the bag before regulation ends. He had four SOG in the 4-3 OT win in Game 2, and all four shots came before the extra session, so he has cashed Over on this prop in four of six games in this series, and five of the past seven postseason games overall.
- Zach Hyman Over 3.5 Shots on Goal (-125 at Caesars)
Looking to the home side, Ian Cole blocked three shots in Game 6. He also blocked three shots in Game 5. In Game 4? Yep, he had three blocked shots. No flamingos for this veteran. He and the Canucks defense will have to come up big if they want to advance, and Cole will be front and center, paying the price in front of his rookie tendy. At plus-money, this is an underrated prop.
- Ian Cole Over 2.5 Blocked Shots (+127 at Caesars)
