The Vancouver Canucks are taking on the Montreal Canadiens Monday night at the Bell Centre in what we think looks like a tightly contested NHL matchup. Both teams are coming into tonight with similar records — Vancouver sitting at 18-12-8 and Montreal at 18-18-3 — so, there's a lot on the line.
The Canucks are slightly favored by the bookmakers with a moneyline of -135, while the Canadiens sit at just +115.
Moneyline: Vancouver -135 | Montreal +115
Point Spread: Canucks -1.5 (+180) | Canadiens +1.5 (-225)
Over/Under: 6 (Over -105, Under -115)
The Canucks haven’t been what we’d call great as of late, going 3-4-3 in their last 10 games. They’re in a slump compared to where they were just a month ago. Montreal, on the other hand, has been a strong 7-3-0 in the same stretch.
Recent trends tell us that the Canadiens are heating up at the right time. They’re showing resilience with a solid overtime win against a dominant Colorado just the other night.
For Vancouver, the offense has cooled down for the most part. Over their last 10 games, they’ve averaged significantly fewer goals than their season-long numbers. This hints at potential struggles against a Canadiens team that’s been better defensively than expected.
On the other side of the ice, Montreal’s recent games have seen quite an uptick in goals. They’re averaging a whopping 3.7 per game in their last 10 outings compared to their season-long average of just 2.9.
Vancouver is led offensively by their star Quinn Hughes, who has 42 points in 34 games. Their defense has been stable but nothing we would call spectacular. Goalie Kevin Lankinen has been fairly steady between the pipes with a .907 save percentage. However, injuries to star players like Center Elias Pettersson could limit their attack and shot production, which has already been somewhat inconsistent of late.
Vancouver’s power play has been pretty solid this year as they’re sitting 14th in the league at 22.4%. Their PK unit, ranked 13th, has been what we’d call reliable but not necessarily game-changing.
Defensively, they’re allowing an average of 3.5 goals per game in their recent matchups. That raises some concerns about their ability to contain Montreal’s scorers.
Montreal’s offense runs through Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield. Both have been clutch in big moments this season. Sam Montembeault, while not elite in the net, has been fairly serviceable with a .900 save percentage and a 2.91 goals-against average. We think he can at least keep this game competitive.
The Canadiens’ penalty kill is ranked 10th at 82.4% has been a huge factor in their success during close games. Several games came down to the special teams and they’ve been able to pull them off with their PP and PK units.
Their offense has really come alive recently, thanks to Caufield's scoring touch and even some depth contributions, which could cause problems for Vancouver's defense which isn’t the best as it is.
Montreal’s momentum and depth give them the edge coming into tonight’s game.
Vancouver’s struggles in recent games, paired up with their injuries to key players like Elias Pettersson, could be just too much to overcome in this road matchup.
The Canadiens, meanwhile, are on a mini hot streak and playing with confidence after wins against top-tier teams like Colorado and Vegas.
Our pick is to back Montreal on the moneyline at +115. This bet provides good value given their recent form and home-ice advantage. We’re reluctant to give them the puck line advantage, but they could surprise us all with a last-minute goal on an empty net.
For those looking at totals, the Over 6 looks like a strong option for your bet slip as well. Both teams have shown some serious defensive lapses recently, and Montreal’s offense is clicking. 6 goals is not an unachievable number for tonight’s matchup.
BettorsInsider Prediction: Canadiens 4, Canucks 3
As for the prop bets for this game, you might want to take a look at Lane Hutson for an assist. He's notched at least 1 assist in 6 of the Canadiens' last 7 games. Taking this bet at +115 isn't a bad deal.
Another prop we like is JT Miller for the same bet. He's notched at least 1 assist in 5 of his last 6 games as well. We don't like the odds as much, -120, but he seems to set up big scoring plays and this feels like easy money.
Lastly, we all love anytime goals and that's where Cole Caufield comes into play. He's found the back of the net in 4 of his last 5 games and with the odds at +160 for him to do it again, there's tons of value in this bet.