Panthers vs. Canadiens Prediction: NHL Betting Odds
It’s essentially a must-win game for the playoff hopeful Montreal Canadiens as they welcome the Florida Panthers on Tuesday in the teams’ final meeting this season.
Panthers vs Canadiens Betting Analysis
With Montreal battling for a wild-card spot, there’s simply no excuse for losing Tuesday to a mediocre Panthers team that will be playing its second game in 24 hours. It’s the easiest game remaining on the Habs’ regular-season schedule and ahead of tough trips to Columbus (Thursday) and Winnipeg (Saturday). That Blue Jackets game is massive, so the Canadiens players need to avoid looking ahead to it and taking Florida lightly.
It’s the fourth and final meeting between Florida and Montreal, with the Canadiens leading 2-1 – they won the game in Montreal 5-1 on January 15. Tomas Tatar leads the Habs with five points (2G, 3A) vs. the Panthers, while Max Domi has four points (3G, 1A). Antti Niemi is 2-0-0 with a 3.15 goals-against average and .920 save per centage, while Carey Price allowed two goals in losing his lone appearance in relief of Niemi.
Former Ottawa Senator Mike Hoffman (1G, 4A) and Aleksander Barkov (3G, 2A) lead Florida with five points each vs. Montreal – Barkov’s three goals came in the one Panthers victory. James Reimer is 1-1-10 with a 3.59 GAA and .879 SV, while Roberto Luongo is 0-1-1 with a 4.16 GAA and .852 SV.
The home team has won five of the past seven in the series.
Florida Panthers
On Monday, the Panthers lost their second straight and allowed seven goals for the second game in a row. It was 7-5 in Toronto. Rookie netminder Sam Montembeault allowed two goals on four shots before getting pulled just over four minutes into game. He was replaced by the future Hall of Famer Luongo, who was supposed to sit because he was going to start this one. Late Monday, Coach Bob Boughner said he wasn’t sure who would start here, but Montembeault has been roughed up of late. Jayce Hawryluk was a bright spot Monday with two goals and an assist in the best game of his young career. The rookie has 12 points on the season. Florida is 1-4 in its past five games in the second of a back-to-back.
Montreal Canadiens
Montreal was a 2-1 overtime loser in Carolina in the second of a back-to-back on Sunday, another game with huge wild-card implications. Paul Byron had the lone Montreal goal, his 15th of the season, at 14:58 of the first. Trevor van Riemsdyk tied it at 14:21 of the third, and Andrei Svechnikov scored with 1:45 left in overtime through Price’s legs. Price stopped the first 36 shots of the game, but he allowed two goals on the final four shots he saw. Price is now 32-22-6 with a 2.51 GAA and .917 SV. Andrew Shaw was pulled from Saturday’s game after an elbow to the head but did play Sunday and was minus-1. Montreal has won its past eight games on Tuesday.
