We’ve got NHL betting action for Monday, as the Colorado Avalanche head to the Pengrowth Saddledome to take on the Calgary Flames.  The Avs have been one of the more impressive turnaround stories in the NHL this season, and they’re in a tough battle in the Western Conference for playoff positioning.  The Flames are currently in 3rd place tie with Phoenix at 57 points, while Colorado is right behind tied with Vancouver for 5th place with 56 points.  And then there’s the Northwest Division rivalry, where the Flames hold down first place one point ahead of the Avs and Canucks.  In other words, this should be a very hotly contested affair and we’ll look to play it accordingly:

COLORADO AVALANCHE VS. CALGARY FLAMES

The Flames are back to their usual routine of playing low scoring games.  And in the Flames’ case, ‘unders’ beget more ‘unders’–Calgary has gone ‘under’ in 10 of 13 this year after playing ‘under’ in three or more games.  The Flames have only gone ‘over’ twice in their past 12 games (8 UN, 2 push) and that’s their style of hockey.  The Avs play more ‘overs’ than Calgary does, but have gone ‘under’ in 3 of their last four.  YTD, they’ve gone ‘under’ in 16 of 27 on the road.

As is so often the case in the NHL, we look to previous head to head matchups to get an idea of how a game will play out stylistically.  And in the case of Avs v. Flames, its a clear verdict for the ‘under’.  12 of the last 17 head to head have gone ‘under’ including 8 of the last 9 in Calgary.  They’ve also gone ‘under’ in all three meetings this year, and with so much at stake in terms of these teams’ postseason position no reason not to expect another defensive battle here.

PLAY CALGARY/COLORADO UNDER 5′ -135