In their second head-to-head meeting of the regular season, the Montreal Canadiens and the New Jersey Devils face off at the Prudential Center for an Eastern Conference tilt. The first puck will drop at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday, March 6, and it’ll be broadcasted live on Reseau Des Sports.
Montreal Canadiens vs. New Jersey Devils Odds
Montreal (+140) is currently the underdog to New Jersey (-160), and the oddsmakers have set the Over/Under (O/U) at 6 goals (-115 for the over, -105 for the under). Those O/U odds have shifted after initially opening at -120 over and +100 under.
Earning moneyline bettors 4.5 units, New Jersey is 33-33 straight up (SU) overall this year. That early-season winning percentage is a complete turnaround from how the team performed during the 2016-17 season (28-54). Through 66 regular season matches, 32 of the team’s games have gone over the total, while another 32 have gone under and just two have pushed. This year, the team is 17-16 SU at home.
The Devils have converted on 20.3 percent of their power play chances this year, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, their penalty kill is ranked 10th overall, and they’ve successfully killed off 82.4 percent of all penalties.
The Devils, as a collective unit, have been called for penalties 3.8 times per game overall this season, and 2.4 per game over their last five matchups home outings. The team’s had to stave off opposition power plays for just 6.3 minutes per game over their last 10 matchups, overall.
Averaging 28.7 saves per game with a .912 save percentage, Cory Schneider (18-19-6) has been the best goalkeeper for the Devils this season. If head coach John Hynes decides to give him a rest, however, New Jersey could turn to Keith Kinkaid (15-12-12 record, .904 save percentage, 2.95 goals against average).
Taylor Hall and Nico Hischier will each be offensive focal points for the Devils. Hall (72 points) has tallied 30 goals and 42 assists and has recorded two or more points on 20 separate occasions this year. Hischier has 13 goals and 28 assists to his name and has notched at least one point in 30 contests.
On the other bench, Montreal is 25-40 straight up (SU) and has lost 18.5 units for bettors taking the moneyline this year. A total of 36 of its matches have gone under the total, while 27 have gone over and just two have pushed. As the visiting team, the Canadiens are 9-22 SU.
The Canadiens have converted on 20.5 percent of their power play chances this season, a mark that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 25th overall and it’s successfully killed off 77.4 percent of all opponent power plays.
Montreal’s skaters have been penalized 3.8 times per game this season, and 4.8 per game over their past five match ups. The team has been forced to defend opponent power plays just 8.4 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Carey Price (27.3 saves per game) has been the primary option in goal for Montreal. Price owns a 15-28-6 record, while registering a .904 save percentage and 2.98 goals against average this year.
Leading the offensive counter for the visiting Canadiens will be Brendan Gallagher (23 goals, 17 assists) and Alex Galchenyuk (15 goals, 24 assists).
Montreal Canadiens vs. New Jersey Devils Betting Predictions
NHL Pick: SU Winner – Canadiens, O/U – Under
Notes
Betting Trends
Penalties and power plays could be even more critical than usual tonight. The Canadiens are 9-13 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 19-27 in games where they serve fewer than 10 penalty minutes, in total. The Devils are 9-17 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 16-25 when their penalty minutes are in the single digits.
Two of Montreal’s last ten games have gone to a shootout. The team is 0-2 in those games and 2-5 overall in shootouts this season.
New Jersey might hold the upper hand if it’s a close one late. The team’s 18-15 in games decided by one goal, while Montreal is 10-14 in such games.
The total has gone under in each of New Jersey’s last five outings.
New Jersey has averaged 2.9 goals per game (overall) this year, but is averaging 1.7 goals per matchup over its three-game losing streak.
New Jersey is ranked 8th this season with 8.0 giveaways per game. That figure has regressed lately, as it’s averaged 9.6 giveaways over its last 10 games and 9.0 giveaways over its last five.
Montreal is ranked 31st this season with 12.7 giveaways per game. That figure’s trended down recently, however, as it’s averaged 10.5 giveaways over its last 10 games and 11.6 giveaways over its last five.
This game features a couple of the more physical defenses in the league. Montreal skaters have given out the second-most hits in the league (25.6 per game) while the Devils have recorded the 12th-most (22.1).
