Wednesday, April 5, 2017

First Niagara Center

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Montreal Canadiens travel to First Niagara Center to play the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday, April 5, 2017. The opening line for this game has the Canadiens at -140 and the Sabres at +127.

Montreal comes into this matchup having played 79 games. They have an overall record of 46-24-9 and on the road they have a record of 22-13-4. Currently they are 1st in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 220 goals and given up 192 goals for a point differential of +28. The Canadiens have an overall record of 7-2-1 in their last 10 games. For the season they have an ATS record of 43-33 and an over/under record of 28-36-15. Buffalo shows up with a record of 32-35-12 including 19-15-6 at home this season. They are 7th in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 197 goals and surrendered 229 for a goal differential of -32. The Sabres have a record of 4-6-0 in their last 10 contests. Their record against the spread is 30-47 while their over/under record sits at 36-36-7.

For expert handicapping advice on this game check out our NHL expert handicapper tips.

Valuable Montreal Canadiens Betting Trends

The Montreal Canadiens are 43-33 straight up

The Montreal Canadiens are 28-36-15 against the over/under

Important Buffalo Sabres Betting Trends

The Buffalo Sabres are 30-47 straight up

The Buffalo Sabres are 36-36-7 against the over/under

Key Montreal Canadiens Injuries

04/04/17 D Shea Weber Lower Body is downgraded to expected to miss Wednesday vs. Buffalo
04/03/17 GO Al Montoya Lower Body "?" Wednesday vs. Buffalo
04/03/17 C Torrey Mitchell Illness "?" Wednesday vs. Buffalo
04/03/17 D Jordie Benn Upper Body "?" Wednesday vs. Buffalo
03/25/17 C Brian Flynn Upper Body out indefinitely

Key Buffalo Sabres Injuries

12/31/16 C Johan Larsson Wrist out for season
04/03/17 RW Kyle Okposo Illness "?" Wednesday vs. Montreal
04/02/17 D Taylor Fedun Foot out indefinitely

Player Spotlight

Alexander Radulov has accumulated 53 total points this season for the Canadiens. He has 18 goals this season with 143 shots on goal giving him a shooting percentage of 13%. He has a total of 35 assists on the season and averages 18.2 minutes played per game. Max Pacioretty has averaged 19.2 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 13% by scoring 35 goals on 265 shots. He has 32 assists giving him a total of 67 points on the season. Carey Price has 37 wins and 18 losses this season in net for the Canadiens. He has had 1,742 shots against him and has given up 132 goals. He has made 1,610 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Player Spotlight

Sam Reinhart has accumulated 47 total points this season for the Sabres. He has 17 goals this season with 173 shots on goal giving him a shooting percentage of 10%. He has a total of 30 assists on the season and averages 17.3 minutes played per game. Kyle Okposo has averaged 19 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 12% by scoring 19 goals on 156 shots. He has 26 assists giving him a total of 45 points on the season. Robin Lehner has 22 wins and 25 losses this season in net for the Sabres. He has had 1,841 shots against him and has given up 148 goals. He has made 1,693 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Canadiens have 101 total points this season. They have scored 220 goals while giving up 192 goals. They have had 224 power play opportunities and have scored 44 goals on those chances for a percentage of 20%. The Canadiens have allowed 247 power play opportunities and given up 47 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 81%. They average 30 shots per game and as a team are shooting 9.29% for the season to this point. They allow 30 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 92%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Sabres have a total of 76 points on the season. They have 57 power play goals on 230 opportunities thus far for a percentage of 25%. They have allowed 229 power play opportunities and have given up 52 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 77%. As a team, the Canadiens have a total of 197 goals scored while they've given up 229 goals to this point. They average 30 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 8.20%. As a team they give up 34 shots per game and have a save percentage of 92%.

Advanced Statistics

Montreal has a Corsi percentage of 51.1% as they've attempted 4,561 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 4,356 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is at 51.2% as they have 3,322 attempts while they've given up 3,164 shots on the defensive end. The Canadiens start possessions in the offensive zone 48.5% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 51.5% for the season. They have 2,427 face off wins compared to 2,416 losses, meaning their faceoff win percentage is 50.1%. On defense Montreal has 1,783 hits and they've blocked 1,192 shots from the opposition.

Advanced Statistics

Buffalo has attempted 4,275 shots at full strength and they've given up 4,774 attempts, meaning their Corsi percentage is at 47.2% for the season. In terms of Fenwick percentage, they currently are at 47.1% as they have 3,269 shots while they've given up 3,676 attempts on defense. The Sabres have an offensive zone percentage of 48.7% and their defensive zone percentage is 51.3% so far this season. They have a faceoff win percentage of 49.7% as they've compiled 2,370 face off wins this season and they have suffered 2,396 face off losses. On defense Buffalo has blocked 1,098 shot attempts and they have 1,814 hits as a unit.

Who will win tonight's Canadiens/Sabres NHL game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take Buffalo +127

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