The Montreal Canadiens (19-24-3) host the Toronto Maple Leafs (28-11-7) at Bell Centre on Saturday. Toronto is coming off a 4-1 win over the Jets on Thursday. The Maple Leafs committed four penalties in the game, conceding one power play goal.
Auston Matthews led the Maple Leafs with two goals. Ilya Samsonov saved an impressive 37 of 38 shots (.973%) in the win. Montreal fell 6-2 to the Panthers on Thursday.
Rem Pitlick and Josh Anderson each scored once for the Canadiens. Pitlick added an assist to lead the team in scoring. Sam Montembeault only had 28 saves on 33 shots (.848%) after starting in the loss.
HEAD TO HEAD
The Canadiens won the first meeting between the teams this season, a 4-3 victory in October. Cole Caufield (2G 0A) and Nick Suzuki (0G 2A) each had two points to lead Montreal. William Nylander (1G 1A) and John Tavares (0G 2A) each had two points to lead Toronto. Jake Allen got the win, saving 29 of 32 shots (.906%).
FACING OFF
Toronto is averaging 3.39 goals per game for the season, eighth in the NHL, and they are taking on a Canadiens team that is allowing 3.67 goals a game (28th).
Meanwhile, Montreal has found the net 2.57 times a game on average, 29th in the league, and won’t find goals any easier to come by against the Maple Leafs’ stout defense, which is holding opponents to 2.63 goals per game (3rd).
Montreal averages fewer shots/game (27.9) than most teams in the league, ranking 30th. With an average of 31.5 attempts, Toronto ranks 17th.
Don’t be surprised to see multiple power play opportunities for the Maple Leafs, as the Canadiens have been penalized 4.70 times a game, second-most in the NHL, for an average of 13.15 minutes (first-highest).
The visitors are averaging 3.78 penalties (18th) and 8.41 penalty minutes a game (22nd). The Canadiens’ 15.38% power play percentage is the second-worst in the league, while the Maple Leafs rank eighth with a conversion rate of 24.67%. When it comes to penalty killing, Toronto has the league’s 17th-ranked PK% at 78.87%, while Montreal is 26th at 73.94%.
TOP PERFORMERS:
Mitchell Marner and Nylander have been the top skaters for the Maple Leafs this season with 55 and 51 points. Marner is among the league leaders with his 38 assists (6th).
In the net, Samsonov (13-4-1) is Toronto’s top goaltender by goals against average. He has a 2.24 GAA, third-best in the league, and a .916% save percentage.
Suzuki and Caufield lead the Canadiens in scoring with 37 and 36 points, respectively. Suzuki has 16 goals and 21 assists in 46 games, while Caufield has 26 goals (9th) and 10 assists () in 46 games.
Montembeault (9-7-2) has the best goals against average for Montreal at 3.05. He has a save percentage of .912%. Allen (10-16-1) has played the most games in net for the Canadiens this season. He has a 3.52 GAA and a .892% save percentage.
HOME AND AWAY
Toronto is 11-8-3 away from home this season. Montreal is 10-12-0 at home this season.
SportsTips’ NHL Pick:
Toronto Maple Leafs (-375)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
