The Montreal Canadiens and the Florida Panthers meet in NHL action from the Amerant Bank Arena on Thursday night. Who comes out ahead in this Atlantic division clash? Let’s dive in and find out with our Canadiens vs. Panthers Prediction.
Montreal Canadiens Team Preview
The Montreal Canadiens come into this one looking to build on a 4-2 win over Arizona last time out. Nick Suzuki has a team-high 56 points with 23 goals and 33 assists while Cole Caufield has 46 points with 19 goals and 27 assists. Mike Matheson has 43 points with a team-high 35 assists of his own. Jake Allen is 5-12-3 with an .892 save percentage and 3.69 GAA while Sam Montembault is 13-10-4 with a 3.16 GAA and a .904 save percentage in goal for Montreal this season. Cayden Primeau is also 5-6-1 with a 3.06 GAA and a .901 save percentage this season for the Habs.
Montreal Canadiens Team Facts
- The Canadiens have lost each of their last eight games at Amerant Bank Arena.
- The favorites have covered the puck line in each of the Canadiens’ last six games at Amerant Bank Arena.
- The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 3′ market has hit in 17 of the Canadiens’ last 18 games as underdogs against Atlantic Division opponents.
- The Canadiens have won the third period in eight of their last nine games against the Panthers following a win.
Florida Panthers Team Preview
The Florida Panthers come into this one looking to build on a 3-2 win over Buffalo last time out. Sam Reinhart leads the Panthers in scoring with 68 points including a team-high 39 goals and 29 assists while Aleksander Barkov has 55 points with 13 goals and 42 assists. Carter Verhaeghe has 61 points with 30 goals and 31 assists while Matthew Tkachuk has 67 points with 46 assists of his own this season. Sergei Bobrovsky has posted a 29-11-2 mark with a 2.35 GAA and .916 save percentage in goal for Florida this season while Anthony Stolarz is 10-5-2 with a 1.97 GAA and a .925 save percentage this season.
Florida Panthers Team Facts
- The Panthers have won each of their last eight home games against the Canadiens.
- The road team has covered the puck line in each of the Panthers’ last seven games.
- The Panthers have won the second period in each of their last eight Thursday games against the Canadiens.
- The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 3′ market has hit in each of the Panthers’ last seven games as favorites against Eastern Conference opponents.
Canadiens vs. Panthers Prediction
I’m on Florida here. The Panthers are heads and shoulders the better team in this game and one win over the Arizona Coyotes does not move the needle for me with Montreal. Florida’s owned this head-to-head matchup in recent years and I don’t think this game is any different despite some close games for the Panthers as of late. Give me Florida in this one.