Flyers vs. Canadiens Game 6 Prediction, Stanley Cup Playoff Odds
The Flyers are favoured on the NHL odds.
Flyers vs. Canadiens Betting Analysis
Three NHL playoff series were clinched in Game 5 on Wednesday with the favourites winning in each, but underdog Montreal forced a Game 6 with a 5-3 victor over Philadelphia. The Habs will be the “home” team Friday, meaning the last line change. The under is 5-1 in the past six meetings.
Philadelphia remains the -458 series favourite with Montreal at +335. The Flyers are +333 to win the Eastern Conference, now third-favourites behind the Lightning (+200) and Bruins (+240), with the Canadiens at +1200.
Philadelphia Flyers
Young Flyers netminder Carter Hart had been absolutely fabulous in this postseason so perhaps he was due an off game, especially playing the second of a back-to-back Wednesday after pitching his second straight shutout vs. the Canadiens on Tuesday. Hart hadn’t played both ends of a B2B all season and was shaky in allowing four goals on 32 shots. He actually was pulled at one point by coach Alain Vigneault but then was kept in the game after a Nick Suzuki goal (the fourth for the Habs at the time) was reversed on a challenge.
Very rare for a team to lose any NHL game when scoring three times on the power play – the Flyers had just one PP goal in the restart entering Wednesday – but that’s what happened in Game 5. Jakub Voracek scored twice (four goals in the restart) on the man advantage and Joel Farabee (third of restart) added the other goal on the PP. Farabee tied the game 3-3 at 10:37 of the third.
Montreal Canadiens
Nick Suzuki (second goal of restart) scored the winner 22 seconds after Philadelphia tied it 3-3 about midway through the third. At 21 years and nine days Wednesday, Suzuki became the fourth-youngest Canadiens player to score the winning goal in a game his team faced elimination. Perhaps the writing was on the wall for Montreal when Joel Armia scored shorthanded for a 1-0 lead at 2:53 of the first as the Habs entered the game 44-16-3 when scoring first in a game when facing elimination.
Armia scored again in the second for the Habs (three goals in restart), with Brendan Gallagher (first goal of restart, and it came on power play) and Phillip Danault, also scoring. Danault’s empty-netter, his first career playoff goal, clinched it at 19:42 of the third. Jonathan Drouin had his best game of the series with two assists. Jesperi Kotkaniemi received a game misconduct in the second period. Carey Price stopped 26 of 29 shots (all 16 at even strength) to improve to 7-5 in 12 career elimination games. Those seven such wins are now the most in team history.
PHI
MON