Carolina Hurricanes vs. Montreal Canadiens Prediction, NHL Odds
Carolina is battling New Jersey and the New York Rangers for the Metropolitan Division title and home-ice advantage at least through the first two rounds of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Hurricanes vs. Canadiens NHL Betting Odds
The Hurricanes look for the season sweep of the Canadiens, winning 6-2 in Raleigh, N.C., on Feb. 16 and 4-3 in a shootout in Montreal on March 7. Seth Jarvis (3G) and Andrei Svechnikov (3A) lead Carolina with three points each in the series. Svechnikov was lost to a season-ending injury torn ACL on March 11, a crushing blow to the Hurricanes’ Stanley Cup hopes as he had 23 goals, 32 assists and a plus-6 rating in 64 games.
Michael Pezzetta leads the Habs with (2G, 1A) with three points. Sam Montembeault allowed six goals on 41 shots in his loss and Jake Allen three on 39 in his. The Hurricanes are 14-3 in the past 17 meetings.
Carolina Hurricanes
Carolina lost its third in a row Thursday, 3-2 as a big favourite in Detroit, blowing a 2-1 second-period lead. Jake Walman won it with just four seconds left in regulation. Brent Burns (14th of season) and Jaccob Slavin (seventh) had the Carolina goals. Burns’ 55 points are a franchise record for a blueliner, and the team’s 51 combined goals from defensemen is also a club record. Forward Teuvo Teravainen (12G, 24A) did not play due to illness and is day-to-day. Former Maple Leaf Frederik Andersen stopped 19 of 22 shots but is on a personal three-game skid, so it likely will be Antti Raanta’s turn Saturday. He would start for most teams and is 16-2-3 with a 2.32 GAA and .907 SV. Carolina is 9-4 in its past 13 Saturday games.
Montreal Canadiens
Montreal dropped its second straight Thursday, 5-2 at home to Florida. Former Calgary Flame Matthew Tkachuk had a hat trick for the Panthers, the last on an empty net. Top prospect Sean Farrell (first goal of season), in his NHL debut, and Rafael Harvey-Pinard (14th) had the goals for Montreal. Mike Matheson had an assist and has 11 points in the last 10 games. Jake Evans also had an assist, his fourth straight game with one. Blueliner David Savard was out with a lower-body injury and is day-to-day. Samuel Montembeault allowed four goals on 29 shots. Not clear if he or Jake Allen will start Saturday, although Montembeault has been the better of the two for the most part lately. The Canadiens are 2-6 in their past eight at home.
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