Arizona Coyotes vs Edmonton Oilers Prediction: The rivals have no global tournament motivation left

Prediction for the NHL Arizona Coyotes vs Edmonton Oilers match which will take place on April 18th. Who will turn out to be stronger? Check the team conditions! Several betting options are available.

Arizona had a classic regular season. The Coyotes weren't hopelessly bad once again, finishing well ahead of the league's main minnows, but they didn't make a dent in the cup race either. The start of the season was perfect for them, and for a while, the Coyotes were in the playoffs, but it didn't last long. They gradually regressed, and it's been a while since they've seriously considered challenging for trophies. However, Andre Tourigny's wards are playing their final game of the season at a great level, winning four of their last six games to finish 13th in the Western Conference.

Conversely, Edmonton stumbled in their regular-season debut, casting doubt on their playoff chances. With a new head coach in place, the Oilers have been playing at a completely different level, going on a winning streak that has seen them close the gap on the Cup Eight and move into contention. In their last six games, Chris Knobloch's wards have been held scoreless just once, a 3:1 defeat to Vancouver, a 3:2 overtime loss to Arizona, and four regulation wins. The Oilers are now fifth in the Western Conference.

At the end of the regular season, the rivals have no global tournament motivation left: Arizona is nowhere close to moving up from 13th place in the Western Conference, while Edmonton's chances of moving up from second place in the Pacific Division are minimal. The fact that the Oilers have a much higher skill level, are having a much better season, and are going into the playoffs in a good mood works in their favor. They have also won seven of the last eight meetings. 

The rivalry between Arizona and Edmonton has been very open, efficient, and entertaining in recent years. In the seven previous head-to-head meetings, the rivals have combined for 55 pucks (an average of 7.86 per game) - a very high figure by NHL standards, especially over such a long distance. It should be noted that the Oilers have been much better offense-wise in this stretch, scoring 36 of the 55 pucks (5.14 per game average) - an impressive statistic.