In a game that features two teams on two-game winning streaks, the Montreal Canadiens and the Florida Panthers meet at the BB&T Center. The action will get underway at 7 p.m. ET on Friday, December 28, and fans at home will be able to witness this Atlantic Division matchup live on Fox SportsNet Florida.
Montreal Canadiens vs. Florida Panthers Odds
Montreal (+130) is currently the underdog to Florida (-150) and the oddsmakers have set the Over/Under (O/U) at 6 goals. The odds for betting the total sit at -130 for the over and +110 for the under.
Montreal is 19-18 straight up (SU) and has earned moneyline bettors 2.8 units this year. 19 of its outings have gone over the total, while 17 have gone under and just one has pushed. The Habs are 9-9 SU as a road team in 2018-19.
Montreal has converted on just 12.8 percent of its power play opportunities this year, a figure that places them in the bottom- overall among NHL teams. Its penalty kill is ranked 23rd in the league, and the team’s successfully killed off 77.5 percent of its penalties.
Montreal, as a collective unit, has been penalized 3.9 times per game this season, and 4.8 per game over its last five on the road. The team has been forced to defend opponent power plays just 7.2 minutes per game over their last five outings.
Averaging 26.2 saves per game with a .904 save percentage, Carey Price (15-15-4) has been the primary option in goal for Montreal this season. If it chooses to rest him, however, the team may turn to Antti Niemi (4-4-1), who has a .876 save percentage and 4.14 goals against average this year.
Max Domi and Jonathan Drouin will both be offensive focal points for the visiting Canadiens. Domi (35 points) has tallied 14 goals and 21 assists, and has recorded multiple points seven times. Drouin has 11 goals and 19 assists to his credit (and has registered at least one point in 22 games).
Florida is 15-20 straight up (SU) and has lost 10.3 units for moneyline bettors this year. 19 of its games have gone over the total, while 13 have gone under and just three have pushed. This season, the team’s 7-9 SU as the home team.
Florida enters the matchup with the third-strongest power-play unit in the NHL, as the team has scored on 28.2 percent of its extra-man opportunities this year. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 23rd overall, and it’s successfully killed off 77.8 percent of all opponent power plays.
The Panthers have been penalized 3.7 times per game this season, 4.0 per game over their last five games total, and 3.8 per game over their last five at home. The team’s been forced to kill penalties just 8.1 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
James Reimer has stopped 22.6 shots per game as the primary option in goal for Florida. Reimer has seven wins, 13 losses, and three OT losses to his name and has maintained a mediocre 3.45 goals against average and a subpar .888 save percentage this season.
Jonathan Huberdeau (nine goals, 33 assists) will lead the offensive attack for Florida.
Montreal Canadiens vs. Florida Panthers Betting Picks
Free Pick: SU Winner – Canadiens, O/U – Over
Betting Notes
- For both of these teams, the total has gone over in four of their past five matches.
- Two offenses that have pounded opposing nets with shots, Montreal has registered the league’s fourth-most shots on goal (34.4) while Florida has attempted the fourth-most (34.5).
- The Panthers are 8-13 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 6-16 when they serve fewer than 10 total penalty minutes.
- Montreal is 2-0 in games decided by a shootout this season while Florida is 1-3 in shootouts.
- Florida is ranked 6th with 9.2 takeaways per game. That figure has trended down recently, however, as it has managed 6.9 takeaways over its last 10 games and 7.8 takeaways over its last five.
- Montreal skaters have created 8.2 takeaways per game over its last five road games, an improvement over its season average of 7.4 takeaways per game (ranked 17th overall).
