Pittsburgh will be looking to make it third time lucky on their Canadian road trip when visiting a suddenly resurgent Vancouver. The Penguins only went down in overtime at Calgary and were undone by breakaways in Edmonton but played well enough on both occasions.

Ottawa will hope to climb off the foot of the NHL standings when they welcome Colorado to the Canadian Tire Centre. However, the Avalanche responded to a heavy defeat by Toronto with a smooth victory over Montreal and are fancied to prove just too strong.

Two of the form teams in the NHL will go head-to-head when Toronto travel to Minnesota and a high-quality contest is surely on the cards. Both sides are on five-match winning streaks but we just feel the Maple Leafs have beaten a stronger set of opponents overall of late.

Nashville were beaten 6-3 in Montreal a couple of weeks ago but are fancied to gain revenge in the return fixture at Bridgestone Arena. The Predators have a solid 7-5-0 record on home ice while the Canadiens are not travelling well this term, going 2-9-1 on the road.

Expansion side Seattle have been making steady progress in recent weeks but may not yet be ready to challenge a red-hot Edmonton outfit. The Oilers are poised to reach the Western Pacific division summit sooner rather than later following a fine hat-trick of victories.

Anaheim and Calgary both head into this clash in fine spirits following back-to-back victories but the Ducks are favoured by the set-up. Home advantage and an extra day’s rest may just prove the key factors in how a close encounter ultimately swings at the Honda Center.

Winnipeg really have been playing better than a tally of just one win in seven outings suggests and New Jersey could feel the backlash. The Devils also head to Canada Life Centre in a slump after a single victory in five outings, so this is a big chance for the Jets to shine.

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Los Angeles and Calgary both went into overtime last time out and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see an extra period required at Staples Center. No team has had more draws in regular time than the Flames this season with five, while the Kings are just one behind them in stalemates.

Carolina came up short against a couple of in-form opponents at the end of last month but can get back on track when entertaining Ottawa at PNC Arena. The struggling Senators are on a six-match losing streak and are languishing at the bottom of the Eastern Conference table.

Colorado couldn’t live with a red-hot Toronto team but should find Montreal more conducive company on the second leg of their Canadian triple-header. The Avalanche had won seven of their previous eight matches, with several key players consistently performing to a high standard.

Toronto put their four-game winning streak on the line against Colorado and have climbed up to second in the NHL standings with a 9-1 run in their last 10 games. The Avalanche have been on a decent run of their own, going 7-2-1 to sit fourth in the Central Division.

Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid have fired Edmonton into contention in the Western Pacific division and can help to see off Pittsburgh. Draisaitl leads the NHL with 20 goals and 40 points, while McDavid has the highest number of assists on 22 and 14 scores to his credit.

Vancouver are 2-8-0 from their last 10 fixtures but both of those wins did come in Canadian derbies and Ottawa also look there for the taking. The Senators have been conceding goals galore in a run of five straight defeats, whereas the Canucks appear more defensively sound.

Pittsburgh and Calgary both saw winning runs come to an end over the weekend but the Flames look better equipped to get back on track. Darryl Sutter’s side crushed the Penguins 4-0 on the road in front of 17,743 fans last month when coming on strong in the closing period.

Montreal and Vancouver are both struggling this season and head into their Centre Bell showdown with very similar records. The Canadiens are coming off a big win but still have a sorry 6-15-2 record, while the Canucks can only boast a marginally better percentage at 6-14-2.

Winnipeg bounced back to form with a good win in Calgary over the weekend and have a great chance to build on that when entertaining Arizona. The Coyotes are cut adrift at the bottom of the Western Central division, five places and 14 points behind the third-placed Jets.

Toronto have stepped their game up and enjoyed their swing through California, beating Los Angeles Kings 6-2 and San Jose 4-1. However, Anaheim have made an impressive start to the season and we think the Ducks will halt that run of road wins for the Maple Leafs.

Boston are only fifth in the Eastern Atlantic division but have games in hand of those teams above them and are still fairly well placed. Brad Marchand continues to lead the way for the Bruins and he should again help them to victory against Vancouver, who have lost three straight.