It is the first of three straight games between these teams when the Montréal Canadiens and Calgary Flames square off on Friday. These teams play again on Saturday and Monday. Montréal won the most recent meeting, 2-1.
Here you can find the best picks, news, and stats for this North Division battle at Scotiabank Saddledome. Montréal is the favorite at -116. This according to PointsBet Sportsbook, which puts the odds Calgary at -105 as the underdog.
Goaltender Carey Price is out for Montréal with a concussion. Calgary reports no injuries.
Canadiens Hang on to Down Edmonton
Montreal took a 4-1 lead over Edmonton, only to watch the Oilers score two goals within the span of 61 seconds with one minute left in the contest. However, the Canadiens held on for the victory. Jake Allen stopped 22 of 25 shots to earn the win and Josh Anderson scored two goals for the team.
Montréal is 13th in goals per game at 2.93 and is 20th and shooting percentage at 9.2%. They are 21st on the power-play at 19.0%. Tyler Toffoli scored his team-leading 22nd goal of the season against Edmonton and now leads the team with 33 points. With two assists on Wednesday, Jeff Petry now has the team lead with 21 and is second in points with 32.
Montréal is 14th in goals allowed per game at 2.80 and is 22nd in penalty killing it 77.8%. Allen remains in net for Montréal. The Canadiens goaltender is 8-8-4 with a 2.54 GAA and a .912 save percentage.
Flames Fall to Senators
Calgary lost to Ottawa on Monday, 4-2. Jacob Markstrom stopped 16 of 19 shots. Milan Lucic and Elias Lindholm had the goals for the Flames.
Calgary is 24th in goals per game at 2.60 and is 24th in shooting at 8.7%. They are 19th on the power-play at 19.4%. Lindholm now leads the team with 39 points and is second in goals with 13. He is first in assists with 26. Johnny Gaudreau is the team leader in goals 15.
The Flames are 17th in goals allowed per game at 2.93 and are 11th on a penalty kill at 80.7%. Markstrom will be back in the net for this game. He is 15-16-2 with a 2.80 GAA and a .902 save percentage. He has played quite well of late, allowing eight total goals over his last five starts.
Trends:
Montréal:
- 12-5 in their last 17 games on Friday.
Calgary:
- 4-10 in their last 14 games.
- 1-4 in their last five home games.
Calgary has gotten the better of Montréal of late, winning four of the last five meetings, however, the Flames are struggling of late, losing their last two games. Montréal responded with a big victory over Edmonton on Wednesday, and I personally like Allen between the pipes better than Price. He is doing a much better job for the Canadiens.
Pick: Take Montréal at -116.
The Total:
These teams have gone under in 15 of the last 23 meetings, including four of the last six meetings in Calgary. The Canadiens have gone under in five of their last seven games, while the Flames have gone under in four of their last five. These teams have gone under 5.5 goals in the last five meetings between them.
Pick: Go under 5.5 at -120.