Montreal Canadiens vs Pittsburgh Penguins NHL Picks, Best Bets and Odds 11/18/21

The Pittsburgh Penguins and Montreal Canadiens meet Thursday in NHL action at the Bell Centre. The Pittsburgh Penguins need a win after losing five of their last six games. The Montreal Canadiens need a win after losing six of their last seven games.

The Pittsburgh Penguins are averaging 2.9 goals per game and are scoring on 8.7 percent of their power play opportunities. Evan Rodrigues leads Pittsburgh with 6 goals, Kris Letang has 8 assists and Jeff Carter has 47 shots on goal. Defensively, the Pittsburgh Penguins are allowing 3.3 goals per game and are killing 86.1 percent of their opponent’s power plays. Tristan Jarry has allowed 31 goals on 374 shots faced, and Casey DeSmith has allowed 14 goals on 97 shots.

The Montreal Canadiens are averaging 2.1 goals per game and are scoring on 14.3 percent of their power play opportunities. Mike Hoffman leads Montreal with 4 goals, Nick Suzuki has 10 assists and Tyler Toffoli has 46 shots on goal. Defensively, the Montreal Canadiens are allowing 3.4 goals per game and are killing 70.7 percent of their opponent’s power plays. Jake Allen has given up 36 goals on 377 shots faced, and Sam Montembeault has allowed 15 goals on 136 shots.

The Penguins are 0-4 in their last 4 road games and 1-5 in their last 6 overall. The Canadiens are 3-14 in their last 17 games as an underdog and 7-19 in their last 26 overall. The over is 5-1 in Penguins last 6 road games. The over is 5-2 in Canadiens last 7 games as an underdog. The home team is 4-1 in the last 5 meetings.

The Pittsburgh Penguins are the better team here and should be favored, but I’m not laying juice with either of these teams. These are two struggling teams that are watching their season fall apart quickly. The underdog has won eight of the last 10 meetings between the Habs and Penguins. If forced to pick this game, I want the plus money. Give me the Canadiens at home.