Montreal Canadiens vs. Utah Mammoth Prediction, NHL Odds
A nice rivalry game on Saturday night at home versus the Toronto Maple Leafs was what the Canadiens needed to get their season back on track. They will have a tough test in Salt Lake City versus the Mammoth, who are 7-2-1 on home ice.
The NHL Odds have the Mammoth as the favourite to win at -140 on Wednesday night. The total sits at an even six goals, with puck drop from Delta Center set for 9:30 PM EST.
Canadiens vs. Mammoth NHL Betting Odds
The Habs hosted Utah back on November 8th, beating them 6-2 in their third-ever matchup. Montreal’s Cole Caufield scored a pair in the game, while teammates Oliver Kapanen and Alex Newhook also had two-point nights. Mammoth vs Canadiens has hit the OVER in two of three, with Montreal covering the spread in the two most recent matchups. Samuel Montembeault for Montreal and Karel Vejmelka for Utah have been the starters in each of those meetings.
Montreal’s recent slide has been riddled with poor defensive play and goaltending. They gave up more than five goals in three of their past six games, easily hitting the OVER in four games in that span. Their high-flying offence still ranks fourth in the league, potting 3.43 goals per game. Add that to their 27th-ranked defensive game, and you get a team playing the OVER in 15 of their 21 contests.
The Mammoth have gone six games without hitting the OVER, bringing them to 8-12-3 O/U on the season. Utah’s offence and defence are both sitting in the middle of the pack, scoring 3.04 goals per game, while giving up 2.96. They won their last two games, covering the spread in both and now sit at nine covers in 23 games.
Montreal Canadiens
The Habs are opening a three-game road trip on Wednesday, after a big morale-boosting 5-2 win over the Leafs, snapping an embarrassing five-game losing streak. Montreal jumped out to an early lead and never looked back, going up 4-0 just past the midway point of the contest. Jakub Dobes stopped 24 of 26, getting him back in the win column. The youngster lost his swagger over the past few starts; hopefully, he has found it again.
The blueline had a big impact offensively in this one, with a pair of goals from Noah Dobson (2nd, 3rd) and Lane Hutson (3rd), who got the whole thing started.
Florian Xhekaj made his anticipated debut, bringing the Bell Centre to its feet with his NHL assist and fight. With him and his brother Arber, the Canadiens have a two-headed monster.
Montreal added the newest free agent on the market, picking up forward Alexandre Texier on Monday. The 26-year-old centre/winger adds depth to their banged-up forward group and will likely debut on Wednesday. He has bounced around a bit for a young player, picking up 91 points (40G 51A) in his 240 games of experience.
Utah Mammoth
After a stretch of just two wins in 11 games, the Mammoth bounced back with back-to-back home wins Saturday and Monday. They are wrapping up a three-game homestand on Wednesday, looking to improve on their already great record at Delta Center.
Logan Cooley put the team on his back in Monday’s 5-1 win over the Vegas Golden Knights. The 21-year-old ended the game with four goals and an assist for his first career five-point night. Vejmelka held the Knights to a single goal, stopping 33 shots, in his best performance of the season.
Beating Vegas was important in the standings, as they pulled into a tie with them for the first wildcard spot. They are also just one point back of third in the Central Division, trailing the Minnesota Wild. Sports Interaction’s NHL Futures Board has them favoured to make the postseason at -227.
Defenceman Sean Durzi has missed the past six weeks with a shoulder injury and could possibly return to the lineup on Wednesday. Durzi has played just two games this season and notched just a single point, playing on the Mammoth’s second pair.
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