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All of a sudden, Wednesday’s showdown between the Ducks and Utah Hockey Club is massive.
Neither side looked like it would factor into the playoff race just a few weeks ago, but both clubs have got hot at just the right time and are now in direct competition with one another for the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
A win for Utah could pull them within two points of the final playoff spot in the West, while the Ducks could find themselves within six points if Vancouver defeats Calgary.
Utah is a -285 favorite to get the job done at home on Wednesday.
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TeamSpreadMoneylneOddsDucks+1.5 (-110)+250o6 (-120)Utah-1.5 (-110)-320u6 (+100)
The Ducks were one of the biggest long shots to make the playoffs before the season began, but they’ve made things interesting with a 10-6-1 run over the last two months.
Anaheim did fumble an early lead against the Capitals on Tuesday night, but it gets the opportunity to get right back on track against Utah on Wednesday.
And while Utah deserves to be a considerable favorite for this tilt, the line does seem a bit too wide.
The Ducks have struggled defensively all season, but they have enough offensive firepower to outscore their issues and Utah isn’t the type of team to exploit a team’s shortcomings in its own zone.
Utah ranks 20th in the NHL in 5-on-5 scoring and is in the middle of the pack when it comes to creating high-danger scoring chances.
The schedule situation for Anaheim isn’t grand, but these two teams are much closer than these odds suggest.
The Ducks are a live underdog in a massive spot on Wednesday night.
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Final prediction: Ducks (+230)
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