The Avs are one of the hottest teams in the NHL right now (crazy what an upgrade in net can do!). They will be without Val Nichushkin and Jonathan Drouin, but that shouldn't matter here. Colorado is coming off a 3-1 win over the defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers, and the team's stars (MacKinnon, Makar, and Rantanen) are playing outstanding hockey. Mackenzie Blackwood has been on fire since coming over from the Sharks, and I don't see him slowing down anytime soon. I like the Avs in a 4-2 or 4-1 type of game.

Colorado is down a couple of regular forwards in Jonathan Drouin and Valeri Nichushkin and is giving rookie Trent Miner his first NHL start in net. The 23-year-old has a 2.47 GAA in the AHL this year and did make one NHL appearance in relief in mid-November, stopping 12 of 13 shots vs. Washington. The Avs are still way better than Chicago, but this feels like a bit of a trap game after beating Florida on Monday in a possible Stanley Cup Finals preview and visiting Minnesota on Thursday in a possible West Finals preview. At this solid price, why not take the Hawks to hang close against a rookie.