The Montreal Canadiens will be looking to put an end to a four-game losing streak in Tampa Bay when they return to action against the Lightning on Saturday as +145 road underdogs on the NHL odds at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Montreal heads south after opening its current seven-game road trip on a steady 3-1-0 run, and has now picked up the win in seven of 10 overall outings going into Saturday night’s matchup at Amalie Arena.
While the Canadiens have rebounded well from a recent eight-game losing streak, they still have work to do to overcome struggles in recent trips to Tampa Bay. The team has been outscored by a wide 15-8 margin in four straight road defeats at the hands of the Lightning, capped by a 3-0 loss as a +180 wager at betting sites in their last visit back in mid-February.
The Lightning recorded a 3-1 win in Montreal as -135 chalk on October 15 to improve to 9-1-2 in their last 12 matchups with the Canadiens. Tampa Bay is also coming off a decisive 6-1 victory over the visiting Dallas Stars at -180 odds, but the team continues to be plagued by inconsistency that has denied them consecutive wins during a 4-5-1 run on home ice.
Elsewhere on the Saturday NHL betting lines, the Vancouver Canucks aim to extend their current win streak to four games as they close out a five-game homestand against the slumping Los Angeles Kings as -175 home favourites.
With Monday night’s 4-2 victory over the visiting Edmonton Oilers the Canucks have averaged over four goals per game during their current surge, and have improved their Pacific Division-leading home record to 11-5-3.
Vancouver has also dominated during a four-game win streak against the Kings. The team has outscored Los Angeles by a 20-10 margin, powered by a lopsided 8-2 victory at Rogers Arena on October 9. That paid dividends to those taking the OVER in totals betting, which has prevailed in each of the two meetings between these teams this season.
Earlier on Saturday night, the Toronto Maple Leafs return home to take on the New York Rangers as betting favourites. The Maple Leafs dominated in a 6-3 rout of the Rangers as a -160 wager last week at Madison Square Garden, and now sport a 5-1-2 record over their past eight meetings with New York according to the OddsShark NHL Database.
The Rangers, meanwhile, have scored four or more goals on four occasions during a steady 5-2-2 run on the road heading into their matchup against Toronto on Saturday night.
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