Montreal Canadiens vs New York Islanders prediction 1-25-24 Picks

The New York Islanders will play the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec. New York has lost five of their last six games, while Montreal is on a three game losing streak. Let’s take a look at the betting matchup and the Islanders vs Canadiens prediction.

Islanders Preview

The New York Islanders are 20-16-11 this year after they lost to Vegas by a score of 3-2 in their last game. New York tied the game at one in the second period, but allowed Vegas to score the next two goals and couldn’t overcome the deficit. The Islanders out shot Vegas by a total of 42-27 and went 0-3 on the power play in the game. New York defeated Dallas by a score of 3-2 in the game prior to Vegas, but they lost to Chicago, Winnipeg, Minnesota, and Nashville before that. The Islanders are scoring 2.91 goals per game and they are allowing 3.32 goals against per game, while going 22.2% on the power play and 73.4% on the penalty kill. Mathew Barzal has led New York with 12 goals, 36 assists, and 136 shots on goal. The projected starting goalie for New York is Semyon Varlamov, who is 6-4-2 this year with a 2.78 goals against average and a .918 save percentage. 

New York Islanders Team Facts

• The Islanders have lost four of their last five games as favorites.
• The Islanders have failed to cover the puck line in each of their last six games.
• The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 2′ market has hit in 15 of the Islanders’ last 16 games following a loss.
• The Islanders have lost the second period in each of their last five games.

Canadiens Preview

The Montreal Canadiens are 19-21-7 this season after they lost to Ottawa by a score of 4-1 in their last game. Montreal allowed the first three goals in this game, but they were able to score once in the third to avoid the shutout. The Canadiens were out shot by a total of 28-25 and went 0-5 on the power play in the game. Montreal lost to Boston by a score of 9-4 and Ottawa by a score of 6-2 in the two games prior to Ottawa. The Canadiens are scoring 2.68 goals per game and they are allowing 3.51 goals against per game, while going 18.7% on the power play and 73.8% on the penalty kill. Nick Suzuki has led Montreal with 12 goals, 27 assists, and 107 shots on goal. The projected starting goalie for Montreal is Sam Montembeault, who is 10-7-4 this year with a 3.11 goals against average and a .903 save percentage. 

Montreal Canadiens Team Facts

• The Canadiens have lost each of their last eight Thursday games.
• The Canadiens have covered the puck line in each of their last 11 games as home underdogs following a home loss.
• The Canadiens have lost the third period in nine of their last 11 games against Eastern Conference opponents.
• The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 1′ market has hit in four of the Canadiens’ last five games.

Islanders vs Canadiens Betting Prediction

Montreal comes into this game on a three game losing streak and they have been out scored by a total of 19-7 in those three losses, but they will be at home here. New York is 1-1 with their new head coach after losing to Vegas in their last game, but they played pretty well in that game and generated a good amount of shots. Neither one of these teams is very solid defensively, but Montreal has been really bad in their last three games. I like how New York has played in their last two games and I like them to get the win here.