Montreal Canadiens vs. Tampa Bay Lightning Prediction, NHL Odds
Montreal is looking to avoid losing four games in a row for the first time under new coach Martin St. Louis. Tampa Bay is playing the second half of back-to-back home games after beating Chicago 5-2 last night stretching their win streak to four games.
The Lightning are the -357 favourites to win tonight on the NHL odds with a total of 6.5.
Canadiens vs. Lightning NHL Betting Odds
The Canadiens will try to avoid getting swept in the 2021 Stanley Cup Final rematch after Tampa has taken 3-2 and 5-4 wins over Montreal so far. The Lightning came back in the final five minutes of both games and who other than former Canadien Corey Perry scored both tying goals. 91 percent of the betting action is taking the heavily favoured Lightning to win.
Montreal has lost the past three head-to-heads but kept it close enough to cover the spread. The Over/Under went 3-4 over their past seven meetings with Tampa winning all but one. The Over has seen 61 percent of the bets so far.
The Canadiens are the lowest-scoring team in the league after just being shut out for the fifth time this season. They average 2.52 goals per game and have a 37-28 record on the Over/Under. They dropped their last two against the spread but are still 34-34 ATS.
The Bolts have played back-to-back games to the Under, bringing them to 33-32 on the year. They are 5-5 ATS in their past 10 games and 31-36 this season.
Montreal Canadiens
The Habs were taken to school in Carolina Thursday night losing 4-0, getting outshot 44-32 and dropping their third game in a row. Jake Allen did what he could in the net, stopping 40 of 43, it was his fifth straight game facing 40 plus shots.
Montreal will have some players joining the lineup tonight in Tampa, Ryan Poehling is set to return after missing the past nine games with an upper-body injury and defenceman Jordan Harris will make his debut. Harris recently signed his first NHL contract after being selected in the third round of the 2018 draft.
Cole Caufield was named NHL Rookie of the Month for March picking up 15 points in 15 games. He currently sits ninth in rookie scoring with 33 points in 53 games.
Tampa Bay Lightning
The Lightning was no joke in their April Fool’s Day matchup with the Blackhawks, smoking them at 5-2 for their fourth straight win. Ross Colton scored back-to-back goals in the second period to give the Bolts the lead and they would limit Chicago to only 23 shots on net to seal the win.
Considering the Canadiens’ current threat level and Andrei Vasilevskiy was in net last night, Tampa will likely turn to veteran Brian Elliot between the pipes. He has been great when called upon so far this year posting a 7-3-2 record with a .916 save percentage and a 2.38 goals-against average.
With only 15 games left, Tampa is fighting for home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs. An extra two points tonight could give them room to breathe from the Leafs.
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