The Montreal Canadiens can close out the best of seven series tonight, with a win on home ice against the Boston Bruins. The Canadiens have had the Bruins pegged all season long and tonight should be no different. Oddsmakers at Betway.com have the Canadiens as 1.68 home favs over the Bruins with the over/under set at 5. Get your NHL Playoff Prediction in now at Betway.com
The Canadiens are now 12-1 SU against the Bruins during their last ten meetings and goalie Carey Price is 15-4 SU since the Huet trade. Price is being compared to Patrick Roy, who led the Canadiens to a Cup as a rookie in 1986. He’s 3-1 SU with a 1.25 GAA along with his first ever playoff shutout. The Canadiens defense has been great allowing only one goal on their penalty kill, which isn’t hard considering the Bruins weak offense. Their offense has managed two power play goals in four games or 20 tries and they’re averaging 2.25 GAG during their last four playoff games. They don’t have one player who’s standing out as their go to guy, but rather they are getting goals and assists from over a dozen players. Tom Kostopoulos and Sergi Kostitsyn each have a pair of goals while five others have goals and five others have assists. They have connected as a team and their offense is switched on. They are 2-0 SU at home in the playoffs and 4-1 SU at home in their last five regular season games.
The Bruins are trying their hardest to win but their offense just can’t put the puck past Carey Price. The scores would be a lot higher for the Canadiens if it weren’t for the outstanding goaltending if Tim Thomas. He’s faced 119 shots compared to the 109 shots dished out by the Bruins. Marco Stern had 27 goals during the regular season, he’s been held to one assist and Marc Savard who finished with 77pts has just 3pts. These guys need to step up if they want their playoff run to continue. But if you’ve followed their regular season battles, it’s not looking good for the Bruins. Get your NHL Playoff Prediction in now!
Recent Trends to Consider
- Bruins are 1-4 in their last 5 in the fourth game of a 4-in-6 situation.
- Bruins are 1-4 in their last 5 vs. Eastern Conference.
- Bruins are 1-4 in their last 5 vs. Northeast.
- Bruins are 1-4 in their last 5 Thursday games.
- Canadiens are 6-0 in their last 6 games as a home favorite.
- Canadiens are 6-0 in their last 6 home games.
- Canadiens are 4-0 in their last 4 home games vs. a team with a losing road record.
- Canadiens are 5-0 in their last 5 after scoring 2 goals or less in their previous game.
- Under is 4-0-1 in the last 5 meetings.
GAME: Boston Bruins (42-31-6-7) at Montreal Canadiens (50-25-5-6)
DATE/TIME: Thursday, April 17 – 7:00 PM EST
LINE: Betway.com TOTAL: 5
PICK: Canadiens 1.68
The Bottom Line: The Bruins haven’t won back to back games against the Canadiens all season long and they aren’t about to start winning now. Get your NHL Playoff Prediction in now at Betway.com
