Montreal Canadiens at Boston Bruins NHL Picks & Predictions 1/17/2018

Wednesday, January 17, 2018

TD Garden

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Montreal Canadiens travel to TD Garden to play the Boston Bruins on Wednesday, January 17, 2018. The opening line for this game has the Canadiens at +175 and the Bruins at -195.

Montreal has a record of 18-20-6 this season and on the road they have a record of 7-12-1-1. They are 6th in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 115 goals and given up 138 goals for a point differential of -23. For the season they have an ATS record of 18-26-0 and an over/under record of 19-23-0. Boston is 24-10-8 including 14-5-4-0 at home this season. They are 2nd in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 137 goals and surrendered 108 for a goal differential of +29. Their record against the spread is 24-18-0 while their over/under record is 20-21-0.

Valuable Montreal Canadiens Betting Trends

The Montreal Canadiens are 18-26-0 straight up this year

The Montreal Canadiens are 19-23-0 against the over/under this season

Important Boston Bruins Betting Trends

The Boston Bruins are 24-18-0 straight up this year

The Boston Bruins are 20-21-0 against the over/under this season

Key Montreal Canadiens Injuries

12/18/17 D Shea Weber Foot IR (12/17)
10/22/17 RW Ales Hemsky Concussion IR (10/20)
01/15/18 RW Andrew Shaw Lower Body IR (01/13)
01/15/18 LW Phillip Danault Concussion is OUT Wednesday vs Boston

Key Boston Bruins Injuries

12/30/17 D Adam McQuaid Leg IR (10/19)

Player Spotlight

Max Pacioretty has accumulated 25 total points this season for the Canadiens. He has 12 goals this year with 172 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 7%. He has a total of 13 assists on the season and averages 19.2 minutes played per game. Brendan Gallagher averages 15.3 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 11% by scoring 16 goals on 143 shots. He has 7 assists, giving him a total of 23 points on the season. Carey Price has 13 wins and 14 losses this season in net for the Canadiens. He has 957 shots against him and he's given up 88 goals. He's made 869 saves for a save percentage of 91%.

Player Spotlight

Brad Marchand has scored 41 total points this year for the Bruins. He has 18 goals this season with 91 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 20%. He has a total of 23 assists on the season and averages 20.1 minutes played per game. David Pastrnak averages 18.3 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 15% by scoring 17 goals on 113 shots. He has 22 assists, giving him a total of 39 points on the season. Tuukka Rask has 15 wins and 8 losses this year in goal for the Bruins. He has 767 shots against him and he's surrendered 62 goals. He's made 705 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Canadiens have 42 total points this season, which ranks them 27th in the NHL. They are 29th in the league in goals scored with 115 while they've given up 138 goals, ranking them 10th overall. They have had 133 power play opportunities and have scored 26 goals on those chances for a percentage of 20%. That is 14th in the NHL. The Canadiens have allowed 142 power play opportunities and have given up 31 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 78%, putting them 26th in the league when short-handed. They average 34 shots per game and as a team shoot 7.60% for the season. They allow 32 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 90%. That puts them 23rd in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Bruins are 5th in the NHL with a total of 56 points this year. They have 28 power play goals on 135 opportunities for a percentage of 21%. That ranks them 11th in the league as a power play unit. They've allowed 128 power play opportunities and have given up 22 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 83%. That is 9th in the NHL. As a team, the Bruins are 8th in the league with 137 goals scored while they've given up 108 goals, which is 30th overall. They average 32 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 10.29%. As a team they give up 30 shots per game and have a save percentage of 92%. That is 7th in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Montreal has a Corsi percentage of 51% as they've tried 2,765 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 2,652 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. That ranks them 11th in Corsi percentage. They are 13th in the NHL in Fenwick percentage with 51% as they have 2,022 shots while they've given up 1,939 attempts on defense. The Canadiens start possessions in the offensive zone 52.8% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 47.2% for the year. That puts them 7th and 24th in the league in zone percentages respectively. They have 1,364 face-off wins as opposed to 1,409 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 49.2%. That is 24th overall in the NHL. On defense Montreal has 1,091 hits and they've blocked 713 attempts from opposing offenses, which is 3rd in the league.

Advanced Statistics

The Bruins start possessions in the offensive zone 54.1% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 45.9% for the year. That ranks them 3rd and 26th respectively in the NHL. They have 1,369 face-off wins as opposed to 1,286 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 51.6%. That is 4th in the league. On defense Boston has 1,003 hits and they've blocked 589 attempts from opposing offenses, ranking them 30th in blocked shots. Boston is ranked 9th in Corsi percentage with 51.4% as they've tried 2,468 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 2,331 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. Their Fenwick percentage is 6th in the NHL at 51.6%, as they have 1,855 shots while they've given up 1,742 attempts on defense.

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

Tony's Pick: Take Boston -195

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here

Read more articles by Tony Sink