Free NHL Picks Today: Montreal Canadiens vs New York Islanders 2/11/23

Free NHL Picks Today: Montreal Canadiens vs New York Islanders 2/11/23
Sat 11th February 2023

The Montreal Canadiens (20-27-4) and their stifling penalty killing defense host the New York Islanders (27-23-5), one of the league’s weakest power play offenses, at Bell Centre on Saturday. New York is coming off a high-scoring 6-5 loss against the Canucks on Thursday, ending a run of four wins in a row.

The Islanders committed four penalties in the game, conceding two power play goals. Five players found the net for the Islanders. Mathew Barzal scored and provided two assists to lead the team in scoring. Ilya Sorokin only had 28 saves on 34 shots against (.823%) in the loss.

Montreal lost for the fourth straight game, falling 5-4 to the Senators on January 31. Rafael Harvey-Pinard scored twice to lead the Canadiens. Jake Allen only had 24 saves on 29 shots against (.827%) in the loss.

HEAD TO HEAD

The Islanders won the first meeting between the teams this season, a 2-1 victory in January. Anthony Beauvillier and Casey Cizikas were on the scoresheet for New York. Nick Suzuki scored Montreal’s only goal. Sorokin got the win, saving 22 of 23 shots (.956%).

FACING OFF

New York is averaging 2.89 goals per game for the season, 25th in the NHL, and they are taking on a Canadiens team that is allowing 3.71 goals a game (28th).

Meanwhile, Montreal has found the net 2.55 times a game on average, 29th in the league, and the Islanders are allowing opponents to score 2.69 goals per game (7th).

Montreal averages fewer shots a game (27.8) than most teams in the league, ranking 30th. New York has been one of the league’s better shot-stopping teams, ranking No. 2 with a team save percentage of .922%.

Don’t be surprised to see a few power play opportunities for the Islanders, as the Canadiens have been penalized 4.55 times a game, fourth-most in the NHL, for an average of 12.55 minutes (first-highest).

The visitors are averaging 3.56 penalties (23rd) and 8.47 penalty minutes a game (18th). The Canadiens’ 15.62% power play percentage is the third-worst in the league, while New York’s 16.13% conversion rate ranks fourth-lowest.

Montreal has been equally unimpressive at penalty killing, as the hosts own the league’s third-lowest PK% at 73.03%. New York’s 82.61% ranks fifth in the NHL.

TOP PERFORMERS:

With 49 and 48 points this season, Brock Nelson and Barzal have been the top skaters for the Islanders. In the net, Sorokin (17-16-4) is New York’s top goaltender by goals against average. He has a 2.31 GAA, fourth-best in the league, and a .926% save percentage, second-best.

Suzuki leads the Canadiens in scoring with 40 points. He has 16 goals and 24 assists in 51 games. Sam Montembeault (10-10-2) has the best goals against average for Montreal at 3.19.

He has a save percentage of .909%. Allen (10-17-2) has played the most games in net for the Canadiens this season. He has a 3.58 GAA and a .891% save percentage.

HOME AND AWAY

New York is 11-13-3 on the road this season. Montreal is looking to avoid a fourth straight home defeat this season.

SportsTips’ NHL Pick:

NY Islanders (-200)

Want up to a $1K risk free bet for this pick?
Claim with betmgm image today!

If you need more news, information and predictions, head over to our NHL hub page for all your hockey needs!

*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.

SportsTips covers all the latest betting, odds, picks & predictions news when it comes to major American sports like NFL, NBA, MLB & NHL. If you want to stay up to date with the latest information, SportsTips has you covered!