Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Montreal Canadiens Prediction, NHL Odds
It’s a meeting of two teams headed in opposite directions. The Toronto Maple Leafs have won six straight games and sit solidly atop the North Division standings. They’ll be in Montreal on Monday to face a Habs team that is clinging to the last playoff spot and has lost their last three games.
Toronto is a -139 favourite to win on the NHL odds with a total of 6.0.
Maple Leafs vs. Canadiens Betting Analysis
The Leafs have won four of five meetings with the Habs this season, including both games they played in Montreal. Toronto is 15-26 against the spread. The Leafs have won five straight road games overall, but they’ve dropped 11 of their last 16 games in Montreal.
Montreal is in a bit of a weird spot. They’re sitting in the last North Division playoff spot, but there’s a big gap between the team ahead of them and the team behind them, so they’ll need either a big winning streak or losing streak to move in the standings at all. The Habs have gone 17-21 ATS this season and have only covered in six of their 18 home games. They’ve been an Under team in five of their last seven games.
Toronto Maple Leafs
The way the standings look and with how much time is left in the season, it’s looking more and more like this game will be a first-round playoff preview. Toronto has added a lot of depth over the weekend, picking up forwards Nick Foligno and Riley Nash, as well as goalie David Rittich. Foligno will have to clear COVID quarantine before he can play and Nash is likely out until the playoffs, so neither will be a factor on Monday. It’s hard to see Rittich playing either, but with a back-to-back, maybe we’ll see him take on the team that just traded him, Calgary, on Tuesday?
It wasn’t a pretty win for Toronto against the Ottawa Senators on Saturday, but it ended in two points. The Leafs allowed three straight goals in the second period to blow the lead, but did eventually come back to win 6-5. Auston Matthews (3G, 1A) and Mitch Marner (1G, 3A) each had four-point nights and are now tied with Patrick Kane for third in NHL scoring at 52 points apiece. Jack Campbell also added to his historic run and is now 11-0-0 with a 1.88 goals-against average and .934 save percentage.
Montreal Canadiens
A 5-0 home loss to Winnipeg on Saturday wasn’t exactly the game plan for Montreal. The Habs will be without Brendan Gallagher for six weeks due to a broken thumb and they already look like they’re struggling to generate shots without him. Montreal only managed 19 shots against the Jets on Saturday, including just five in the third period. The Gallagher loss is going to hurt, as his 14 goals on the season ties him with Josh Anderson for second-most on the team. You’ve got to wonder if Cole Caufield will be promoted to the big club even sooner than anticipated. The Habs’ No. 1 prospect has looked strong in the little AHL action he has seen.
Goaltending is another concern for Montreal right now. Carey Price is still not ready to go and hasn’t even practiced with the team. In his absence, Jake Allen has started the last three games and should get the nod again on Monday. Allen is 5-6-4 on the year with a 2.53 GAA and .912 SV. The only game Allen played against Toronto was a 3-2 loss on April 7. He stopped 29 of 32 shots faced.
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