Montreal Canadiens vs. Minnesota Wild Prediction, Preview, and Odds
The Montreal Canadiens are heading to the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota to face the Minnesota Wild. Montreal has a record this season of 14-13-4 and sits 12th in the Eastern Conference. Minnesota is 11th in the Western Conference and has a record of 13-13-4. Last season the Wild won both of their games against the Canadiens. The puck drop is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. EST.
Montreal Lacks Scoring
The Montreal Canadiens are heading to Minnesota after their win on Monday against the Winnipeg Jets that resulted in a score of 3-2. While they are starting to generate a couple wins, Montreal is still ranked 27th in goals per game at 2.71. Even when on the powerplay the Canadiens are still ranked 22nd in powerplay percentage at 18.0%. Defensively the Canadiens are 22nd in the league in goals allowed per game at 3.32, which is made worst by their penalty kill ranked 28th in the NHL.
Sam Montembeault has been the starting goaltender for the Montreal Canadiens this season. Montembeault has a record of 7-4-2 with a goals against average of 2.79 and a save percentage of .911. Montembeault's biggest issue is his defense in front of him which allows the fourth most shots on net per game this season at 34.32.
Wild Bottom Penalty Kill
The Minnesota Wild are returning home after their win in Boston which resulted in a score of 4-3. This would be their fourth win in their last five games. Minnesota has been lack luster this season only scoring 3.00 goals per game and allowed 3.20 goals per game. The issue for the Wild is their penalty kill which ranks second to last in the league at 72.2%.
Filip Gustavssson has taken over the starting role for the Minnesota net. Gustavsson has a record this season of 8-7-2 with a goals against average of 2.91 and a save percentage of .906. Gustavsson has been playing better than Marc-Andre Fleury in net as he has a goals against average of 3.26 and a save percentage of .892.
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Full-Game Side Bet
Rating:
The Minnesota Wild have the advantage of offense on Montreal as the Wild are averaging 3.00 goals per game this season. The Montreal Canadiens are only managing 2.70 goals per game and are going to be up against a decent goaltender in Filip Gustavsson who has been playing relatively well this season. I think that the Wild will be able to defend against Montreal and keep them to a lower score while the Wild get at least two goals more than them.
I am taking the Minnesota Wild spread at -1.5.
Prediction: Minnesota Wild -1.5 ( +130 )
Full-Game Total Pick
Rating:
In the Minnesota Wild's last sixth games at home, the score has stayed under this total. In Montreal's last five games on the road, the total has also stayed under six goals. Both of these teams are keeping the scoring low lately and that is why I am siding with the under. Not to mention Montreal is ranked as the fourth worst team in scoring against a decent goaltender in Filip Gustavsson, we will be lucky to see Montreal get more than one or two goals in this one.
Take the under at 6.
Prediction: Under 6 ( +102 )
Growing up in Pittsburgh, Anthony has always been surrounded by sports. Whether its watching the Penguins win the cup or the Steelers winning another ring, he saw what it took to win it all. He enjoys breaking down stats and applying them to spreadsheets to better his picks. With the combination of watching trends and his spreadsheets, Anthony has been very successful as a sports bettor. His last name is the German word for people and it is clear that he is the people's choice when it comes to handicapping.
