Squaring off for the third and final time this year, the Montreal Canadiens and the Carolina Hurricanes meet at PNC Arena for an Eastern Conference showdown. The action will get underway at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday, February 1 and it will be televised live on Reseau Des Sports.
Montreal Canadiens at Carolina Hurricanes Odds
Carolina enters the matchup as the noticeable favorite with a moneyline of -150. The line for Montreal sits at +130, and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at 6 goals (-125 under, +105 over).
The Hurricanes are 23-27 straight up (SU) and have lost 5.7 units for moneyline bettors thus far. That early-season winning percentage hasn’t moved much from what the team posted during last year’s regular season (36-46). 25 of its 50 outings have gone under the total, while 23 have gone over and just two have pushed. The team’s 11-11 SU at home this season.
Carolina’s converted on 19.3 percent of its power play chances this year, a mark that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 26th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 77.5 percent of all penalties.
Carolina, as a collective unit, has been penalized just 2.8 times per game overall this season, and 3.6 per game over its last five home outings. The team has been forced to kill penalties for just 7.4 minutes per game over its last 10 outings, in total.
Averaging 23.9 saves per game with a .892 save percentage, Scott Darling (9-20-6) has been the primary option in goal for the Hurricanes this year. If the Canes choose to give him a rest, however, head coach Bill Peters may roll with Cam Ward (14-10-10 record, .907 save percentage, 2.78 goals against average).
Teuvo Teravainen and Sebastian Aho will each lead the charge for the Hurricanes. Teravainen (40 points) has put up 13 goals and 27 assists and has recorded two or more points 10 times this year. Aho has 17 goals and 21 assists to his name and has notched at least one point in 24 contests.
Montreal is 20-30 straight up (SU) and has lost 13.8 units for bettors taking the moneyline thus far. A total of 27 of its games have gone under the total, while 21 have gone over and just two have pushed. Montreal’s 8-15 SU as the road team this season.
Montreal has converted on 20.0 percent of its power play chances this year, a mark that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 25th overall and it’s successfully defended 78.1 percent of all penalties.
Montreal’s skaters have been penalized 3.8 times per game this season, and 3.0 per game over their last ten games. The team has been forced to kill penalties just 6.6 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Carey Price (27.6 saves per game) has been the primary choice in goal for Montreal. Price has 14 wins, 22 losses, and four OT losses to his credit, and has registered a .905 save percentage and 3.00 goals against average this year.
Max Pacioretty (16 goals, 15 assists) and Alex Galchenyuk (12 goals, 16 assists) have been the top playmakers for Montreal and will pace the offensive counter for the visiting Canadiens.
Montreal Canadiens at Carolina Hurricanes Betting Picks
Pick: SU Winner – Canadiens, O/U – Over
Notes
Betting Trends
The under has hit in three of Carolina’s last five games.
Two clubs that attempt a lot of shots on goal, Montreal has attempted the league’s sixth-most shots on goal (33.8) while Carolina has attempted the fourth-most (34.3).
Power plays and penalty kills may prove to be critical in tonight’s matchup. The Canadiens are 6-10 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 14-22 when they’re in the box for fewer than 10 penalty minutes, total. The Hurricanes are 13-16 when the team serves fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 19-22 in games where their penalty minutes are in the single digits.
Two of Montreal’s last ten games have been decided by a shootout. The team is 1-1 in those games and 2-2 overall in shootouts this season.
One of the top teams when it comes to creating pressure on their opponents, Carolina is ranked 2nd in the NHL with 10.4 takeaways per game. That figure has trended down lately, however, as it has forced 9.5 takeaways over its last 10 games and 8.8 takeaways over its last five.
Montreal skaters have created 6.2 takeaways per game over its last five road games, its season average of 6.9 takeaways per game (ranked 21st in the NHL).
