A pair of all-Canadian matchups highlight the Saturday NHL schedule, starting in Montreal where the Canadiens play host to the Toronto Maple Leafs in a contest that was listed as a pick’em on the early NHL betting lines at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Montreal returns to action on Saturday after dropping a 4-2 decision to the visiting San Jose Sharks on Thursday, which marked the club’s third loss in five home dates this season going into Saturday night’s game at the Bell Centre.
With Thursday night’s loss to San Jose as -135 home chalk the Canadiens have now alternated between wins and losses in five home contests, while being held to two or fewer goals on three occasions.
Montreal has also struggled in recent home dates with the rival Maple Leafs, surrendering 4.75 goals per game while falling to defeat in three of their past four meetings at Bell Centre, according to the OddsShark NHL Database. However, the Canadiens managed to come away with a 6-5 win the last time the Maple Leafs came to town, back in early April.
The Maple Leafs arrive in Montreal looking to snap a two-game slide on the road. Like the Canadiens, Toronto has struggled to produce consistent results so far this season, tallying back-to-back wins just once since opening their schedule with decisive wins over Ottawa and Columbus. The team’s struggles include a 6-5 shootout loss to Montreal as -150 home chalk in an October 5 matchup which they led 4-1 in the third period.
Despite an uneven early-season performance that has left them squarely on the playoff bubble, the Maple Leafs have maintained their resiliency on the Stanley Cup odds, where they have climbed to +750 favourites.
Later on Saturday, the Winnipeg Jets will hit the ice outdoors at Mosaic Stadium in Regina against the Calgary Flames as +105 underdogs on the NHL odds. The Jets have enjoyed a much needed three days off since dropping a 3-2 decision to the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday that marked their fourth loss in five contests.
Offensive production has been an issue for the Jets, who have scored just eight total goals in their last five games, powering a 3-1-1 run for the UNDER on the totals at online betting sites.
The Flames arrive in Saskatchewan after topping the Florida Panthers in a 6-5 win on Thursday to improve to 4-2-0 over their past six outings. However, Calgary has earned the win in just one of its past four games away from home, and has a 2-3 record in its past five games against Winnipeg heading into Saturday’s neutral-site matchup.
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