Colorado Avalanche vs Detroit Red Wings Prediction, 1/31/2026 NHL Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Colorado Avalanche vs Detroit Red Wings

Date: Saturday, January 31, 2026

Location: Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, MI

TV: Fanduel Sports Network

The Colorado Avalanche (35-7-9) are hitting the road to Little Caesars Arena on Saturday where they will attempt to defeat the Detroit Red Wings (32-17-5).

The Colorado Avalanche will need a bounce back game after taking a 5-2 loss against the Senators in their last outing. Colorado earned 6 mins in the box in this matchup. The Avalanche had a rough night on the offensive side of the ice in the loss. Additionally, they had 1 opportunity with more players on the ice but weren't able to notch a goal. In the outing, they earned a goal on 2 of the 18 shots they put on goal.

When talking about scoring goals, the Colorado Avalanche have accounted for 199 goals (1st in pro hockey) over the course of the season and have surrendered 122. For the current season, they have accumulated 79 points and their points percentage is .775. Colorado has accumulated 170 power play opportunities and they have added 27 goals out of those tries, giving them a rate of 15.88%. When playing at even strength, the Avalanche have allowed the opponent to score 100 goals while notching 172 of their own. Colorado has attempted 1,764 shots and holds a shooting percentage of 11.3%. The Avalanche have seen 1,362 shots taken against them and are the owners of a save percentage of .910. Colorado Avalanche opponents have earned 141 power play opportunities (27th in hockey) and have scored 22 goals in those chances.

The player guarding the cage in this matchup is Mackenzie Blackwood. Blackwood has been involved in 272 contests over the course of his NHL career. He has amassed a record of 117-107-29 and he has gotten the start in 255 games. The opposition has racked up 746 goals against Blackwood in his professional hockey career and his goals against average per contest is 2.93. Blackwood has seen 7,923 shots taken against him and has amassed 7,177 saves. His save percentage is at .906 in his 13,402 minutes between the pipes. During his career on the ice, Blackwood has compiled 143 quality starts and his quality starts rate sits at .561.

In their last outing, Detroit faced off against the Kings in an outing where the Red Wings went home in defeat by a final of 3-1. The Red Wings recorded 1 goal out of the 28 shots on goal they took. They had 4 power play attempts in this matchup but weren't able to notch a goal.

Detroit has taken 1,540 shots (9th in professional hockey) and has a shot percentage of 10.78%, while allowing the other team 1,517 shots. They have recorded a penalty kill percentage of 79.02% on the other teams 143 power play tries, and their save percentage is 89.5%. They have a tally of 170 power play opportunities and they have a power play rate of 24.12%. The Red Wings are sitting with 125 goals at even strength and 41 goals (5th in hockey) while on the power play. They have permitted 160 goals to be scored by of a combination of 130 goals at even strength and 30 goals while they had less men on the ice. For the year, the Detroit Red Wings have earned 166 goals, 69 points, and a points percentage of .639.

For the opposition you will find John Gibson defending the goal. He has compiled 14,842 stops out of the 16,313 shots tried, giving him a percentage of .910. Gibson has a lifetime mark of 225-227-64 and has played in 539 games. He has started in 527 games and has played 26,899 mins. Gibson's percentage of quality starts sits at 54.5% and he has qualified for 287 quality starting assignments in his professional career. His opponents are averaging 2.79 goals/game and he has relinquished 1,471 goals in total.

Who will win tonight's NHL game against the spread or moneyline?

Josh's Pick: Take Colorado

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