Florida Panthers vs. Montreal Canadiens Prediction, NHL Odds
Claude Giroux and Ben Chiarot make their Florida Panthers debut Thursday night in Montreal against the Canadiens.
The last place team in the Atlantic Division, Montreal, will host the first place Panthers, who have been idle since winning on Friday. The Panthers are the -281 favourites to win on the NHL odds, with a total of 6.5.
Panthers vs. Canadiens NHL Betting Odds
Thursday night will be the second of a four-game season series that currently sits 1-0 Panthers. Jonathan Huberdeau had three assists while leading Florida to a 5-2 win over Montreal in the opener. Samuel Montembeault started for the Habs against his former team and held his own, stopping 43 shots. These teams face off again on March 29.
A whopping 90 per cent of bettors are taking the Panthers to win, forcing oddsmakers to move them from a -259 favourite to a -281. The Over is 7-3 in their last 10 head-to-heads and 65 per cent of the betting action is going that way for this one too.
The Panthers have only covered twice in their past six games but still boast a 34-24 record ATS on the year. Florida has played the Over 36 times this season, the most in their division.
Montreal has covered in three straight games as they try to even their 31-32 record ATS. Their two most recent games have played the Under, but the Over is still 7-3 in their last 10.
Florida Panthers
Florida got back in the win column Friday night, beating the Anaheim Ducks 3-0 in their own barn. Huberdeau scored two goals in the first period, bringing him to 86 points on the season. Spencer Knight stopped all 17 shots for his first career shutout.
Florida’s win came at a high cost as they lost their top defenceman, Aaron Ekblad, in the process. He went down with a right leg injury on his first shift of the game and will likely miss the rest of the season. Ekblad’s 57 points is fifth-most amongst blueliners.
The Panthers continue the Eastern leg of their seven-game road trip on Saturday in Ottawa.
Montreal Canadiens
The Canadiens fell 3-2 in overtime to their rivals, the Boston Bruins on Monday night. Joel Armia sniped a shorthanded goal and David Savard scored in his return to the lineup after missing 20 games with an injury. Jake Allen stopped 43 of 46 shots in net to keep Montreal in it.
Defencemen Justin Barron and William Lagesson skated with their new team for the first time at practice on Wednesday. Either guy could make his Habs debut tonight. Less exciting news from practice was the absence of both Nick Suzuki and Jonathan Drouin. Both forwards are listed as day-to-day and are questionable for Thursday.
The Canadiens wrap up their six-game homestead Saturday night versus the Toronto Maple Leafs.
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