Montreal Canadiens vs. New Jersey Devils Prediction, NHL Odds

Daniel Coyle | Updated Nov 07, 2024

NHL: Montreal Canadiens at Pittsburgh Penguins

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The Montreal Canadiens will look to halt their slide towards the bottom of the NHL standings when they visit the New Jersey Devils in Thursday NHL betting action at Prudential Center.

Montreal
9-13-2-1
AT
November 07, 2024, 7:00 PM ET
Prudential Center
New Jersey
17-9-2
Puckline +1.5 +105
Moneyline +275
Over / Under o +6
Matchup Odds
Puckline -1.5 -125
Moneyline -350
Over / Under u +6
Matchup Odds

The Canadiens embark on a four-game road trip after dropping a 3-2 decision to Calgary on Tuesday night that extended their current losing streak to four games and leaves them just one point up on Philadelphia and Nashville in the race for last place overall in the league standings. The Devils return home after closing a three-game swing through Western Canada with Monday’s 3-0 shutout victory in Edmonton and have now won three of four to remain in a three-way tie in the Metropolitan Division with Carolina and Washington.

The Devils are pegged as strong -350 home favourites on the Thursday NHL odds and are also a short -125 puckline bet to claim victory by a multi-goal margin. The Canadiens trail as +275 underdogs and the total is listed at 6.5.

Canadiens vs. Devils NHL Betting Odds

The Canadiens have plenty of work to do to overcome a brutal start to the season and a dismal track record when facing the Devils. After dropping two of three to the Devils last season, the Canadiens have now lost 13 of 17 in head-to-head action, but have bucked that trend in recent visits to the Garden State, winning four of their past six. However, the Habs have enjoyed little success away from Bell Centre this season, losing four of their past five road games and have seen seven of their nine overall defeats to date come by multi-goal margins.

Conversely, the Devils effectively rebounded from a recent four-game slide during their recent western junket. New Jersey skated to shutout victories in Edmonton and Vancouver and have outscored opponents by a 15-5 margin during their current 3-1-0 run but have surrendered five goals per game losing three of their past four home contests.

Montreal Canadiens

Preseason hopes that this team would take the next step in their rebuild have been dashed by a dismal 4-7-2 start. In addition to compiling the league’s second worst goals-against average after allowing five goals per game during their current four-game slide, a toothless Canadiens offence has mustered just eight total goals over that stretch and just one even strength goal over the past two games.

Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki have given long suffering Habs fans with some hope. Caufield’s 10 goals gives him a share of the league lead going into Thursday’s action and Suzuki has contributed a team-high 13 points, but neither top liner has made their way onto the scoresheet in the past two games. Veteran Brendan Gallagher has done his best to fill the void, with four of his five goals coming on the road.

New Jersey Devils

Clutch goaltending and an opportunistic offence proved to be the difference in Monday’s 3-0 win over the Oilers, who outshot the Devils by a 31-16 margin. Jake Allen turned in another steady performance between the pipes, turning aside all 31 shots he faced to improve to 3-1-1 in five appearances to date. The former Canadien would like nothing better than to face his former teammates for the first time since getting dealt to New Jersey ahead of last season’s trade deadline. However, there has been no early indication as to who head coach Sheldon Keefe will call on for Thursday’s matchup.

Whoever gets the call will be playing behind a Devils attack that has produced steady results. After scoring six goals in two of their three recent wins, the Devils now rank 10th in the NHL with 3.53 goals per game, and have scored at least five goals in three of their past four home dates. Jesper Bratt has emerged as a model of consistency while recording at least a point in 12 of 14 outings and 13 points overall. Nico Hischier has built his team lead in scoring by recording seven points in his past five home games and has averaged a point per game in his past 14 appearances against Montreal.

NHL Prediction: Who Will Win Canadiens vs. Devils?

NHL Predictions
SportsInteraction
  • MON
  • +275 -350
  • NJ
Matchup NHL Odds