The BB&T Center will play host to an intriguing matchup as the Florida Panthers square off against the visiting Montreal Canadiens. This divisional matchup will get started at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 7, and it’s being shown live on Fox SportsNet Florida.
Montreal Canadiens vs. Florida Panthers Odds
Montreal (+100) is currently the underdog to Florida (-120), and the sportsbooks have set the Over/Under (O/U) at 7 goals (-120 for the under, +100 for the over).
The Panthers are 33-34 straight up (SU) and have hurt moneyline bettors to the tune of -4.3 units so far. That early-season winning percentage isn’t too far off from to the 36-46 record the team posted during the 2018-19 season campaign. Of the team’s 67 games this season, 38 have gone over the total, while 26 have gone under and just three have pushed. The team is 16-18 SU at home this year.
Florida’s converted on 21.1 percent of its power play chances this year, a mark that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 22nd overall, and it’s successfully killed off 78.0 percent of all penalties.
Florida, as a collective unit, has been penalized just 3.2 times per game overall this season, and 2.4 per game over its last five contests. The team has had to kill penalties for just 7.2 minutes per game over its last 10 outings, overall.
Averaging 27.1 saves per game with a .900 save percentage, Sergei Bobrovsky (24-26-6) has been the top option in goal for the Panthers this season. If head coach Joel Quenneville decides to rest him, however, the Panthers may go with Sam Montembeault (5-9-9 record, .890 save percentage, 3.34 goals against average).
Jonathan Huberdeau and Aleksander Barkov will both be focal points for the Panthers. Huberdeau (77 points) has tallied 22 goals and 55 assists and has recorded two or more points 21 times this year. Barkov has 20 goals and 42 assists to his credit and has notched at least one point in 39 contests.
Montreal has lost 15.3 units for bettors taking the moneyline thus far and is currently 31-38 straight up (SU). Through 69 regular season outings, 34 of its games have gone under the total, while 32 have gone over and just three have pushed. Montreal’s 17-16 SU as the visiting team this season.
Montreal has converted on 18.2 percent of its power play chances this season, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 20th overall and it’s successfully killed off 78.4 percent of all penalties.
Montreal’s skaters have been penalized 3.4 times per game in total this season, and 4.2 per game over their last five on the road. The team’s been forced to kill penalties 13.4 minutes per game over their last five road outings.
Carey Price (27.4 saves per game) has been the main option in goal for Montreal. Price owns a 27-30-6 record, and has registered a .909 save percentage and 2.77 goals against average this year.
For the visiting Canadiens, the offense will be facilitated through Tomas Tatar, who has 39 assists and 22 goals on the year.
Montreal Canadiens vs. Florida Panthers Betting Predictions
Prediction: SU Winner โ Panthers, O/U โ Over
Betting Trends
Florida is 3-4 in games decided by shootout. Montreal is 4-1 in shootouts.
The under has hit in four of Florida’s last five outings.
This game features two clubs that fire the puck on goal a lot. Montreal has taken the league’s third-most shots on goal (34.2) while Florida has attempted the ninth-most (32.6).
Florida has averaged 3.4 goals per game overall this year, but has been averaging 1.5 goals per contest in its last four contests (the team is 0-4 SU over that stretch).
Over Florida’s last ten outings, six of them have been decided by two or more goals (the team is 2-4 in those games).
Montreal skaters have accounted for the sixth-most hits in the league (26.4 per game), but the team’s recorded just 19.8 hits over their last five away games.