Canadiens Vs. Panthers Prediction

Florida Panthers (20-12-2) vs Montreal Canadiens (15-13-5)

Game Info: Saturday, December 30, 2023 at 7:00 pm (Amerant Bank Arena)

Betting Odds: Florida Panthers -286 / Montreal Canadiens +220 --- Over/Under: 6.5

The Montreal Canadiens and the Florida Panthers meet in NHL action from the Amerant Bank Arena on Saturday night. Two teams headed in different directions, who comes out on top here? Let’s dive in and find out with our Canadiens vs. Panthers Prediction.

Montreal Canadiens Team Preview

The Montreal Canadiens will be looking to rebound after a 5-3 loss at the hands of the Carolina Hurricanes in their last matchup. Nick Suzuki has a team-high 30 points with 10 goals and 20 assists while Cole Caufield has 24 points with 8 goals and 16 assists. Mike Matheson has 25 points with 19 assists of his own while Sean Monahan has 21 points with 9 goals and 12 assists. Jake Allen is 4-6-2 with a .904 save percentage and 3.43 GAA while Sam Montembault is 7-4-3 with a 2.86 GAA and a .907 save percentage in goal for Montreal this season.

Montreal Canadiens Team Facts

• The Canadiens have lost each of their last eight games at Amerant Bank Arena following a road loss.
• The Canadiens have covered the puck line in seven of their last eight games as underdogs against opponents who are on the second leg of a back-to-back.
• The Canadiens have lost the third period in seven of their last eight games at Amerant Bank Arena following a road loss.
• The 'Over 1.5 Goals Period 3' market has hit in each of the Canadiens' last 11 games as underdogs against Atlantic Division opponents.

Florida Panthers Team Preview

Sam Reinhart leads the Panthers in scoring with 44 points including a team-high 23 goals and 21 assists while Aleksander Barkov has 38 points with 11 goals and 27 assists. Carter Verhaeghe has 30 points with 17 goals and 13 assists while Evan Rodrigues has 23 points with 16 assists and Matthew Tkachuk has 26 points with 21 assists of his own this season. Sergei Bobrovsky has posted a 17-9-1 mark with a 2.50 GAA and .911 save percentage in goal for Florida this season while Anthony Stolarz is 4-3-1 with a 2.18 GAA and a .915 save percentage this season.

Florida Panthers Team Facts

• The Panthers have won each of their last seven home games against the Canadiens.
• The Panthers have failed to cover the puck line in eight of their last nine games as home favorites against Eastern Conference opponents.
• The Panthers have won the second period in each of their last five games against the Canadiens.
• The 'Over 1.5 Goals Period 1' market has hit in seven of the last eight games between the Canadiens and Panthers at Amerant Bank Arena.

Canadiens vs. Panthers Prediction

I’m backing Florida here. The Panthers have owned the Canadiens in a lot of recent meetings and given the inconsistencies of the Canadiens, it’s hard to get behind Montreal here. Sure, Florida’s on the second half of a back-to-back, but they’re still the better team here by a mile and I think they get the job done in this one. Give me Florida on the -1.5 puck line in this one.

The pick in this article is the opinion of the writer, not a PickDawgz site consensus.