Montreal Canadiens at New York Islanders NHL Picks & Predictions 3/2/2018

Friday, March 2, 2018

Barclays Center

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Montreal Canadiens travel to Barclays Center to play the New York Islanders on Friday, March 2, 2018. The opening line for this game has the Canadiens at +127 and the Islanders at -140.

Montreal has a record of 24-29-10 this season and on the road they have a record of 8-19-2-1. They are 6th in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 160 goals and given up 195 goals for a point differential of -35. For the season they have an ATS record of 24-39-0 and an over/under record of 26-35-0. New York has a record of 29-28-7 including 16-11-4-1 at home this season. They are 7th in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 208 goals and surrendered 228 for a goal differential of -20. Their record against the spread is 29-35-0 while their over/under record is 38-23-0.

Valuable Montreal Canadiens Betting Trends

The Montreal Canadiens are 24-39-0 straight up this year

The Montreal Canadiens are 26-35-0 against the over/under this season

Important New York Islanders Betting Trends

The New York Islanders are 29-35-0 straight up this year

The New York Islanders are 38-23-0 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)
02/28/18 LW Kerby Rychel Acquired is "?" Friday vs NY Islanders
02/28/18 D Rinat Valiev Acquired is "?" Friday vs NY Islanders
02/23/18 GO Carey Price Concussion IR (02/20)
01/15/18 RW Andrew Shaw Lower Body IR (01/14)

Key New York Islanders Injuries

12/18/17 D Calvin de Haan Shoulder IR (12/16)
11/08/17 LW Nikolay Kulemin Shoulder IR (11/06)
02/24/18 C Alan Quine Lower Body IR (02/22)
02/19/18 GO Thomas Greiss Lower Body IR (02/16)
02/08/18 D Scott Mayfield Lower Body IR (02/06)
01/20/18 LW Shane Prince Upper Body IR (01/18)

Player Spotlight

Antti Niemi has 4 wins and 6 losses this season in net for the Canadiens. He has 416 shots against him and he's given up 43 goals. He's made 373 saves for a save percentage of 90%. Brendan Gallagher has accumulated 37 total points this season for the Canadiens. He has 21 goals this year with 210 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 10%. He has a total of 16 assists on the season and averages 15.6 minutes played per game. Max Pacioretty averages 19.1 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 8% by scoring 17 goals on 212 shots. He has 20 assists, giving him a total of 37 points on the season.

Player Spotlight

Josh Bailey has scored 62 total points this year for the Islanders. He has 15 goals this season with 113 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 13%. He has a total of 47 assists on the season and averages 18.1 minutes played per game. Jaroslav Halak has 18 wins and 21 losses this year in goal for the Islanders. He has 1,512 shots against him and he's surrendered 135 goals. He's made 1,377 saves for a save percentage of 91%. Anders Lee averages 17.3 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 19% by scoring 30 goals on 162 shots. He has 18 assists, giving him a total of 48 points on the season.

Useful Team Statistics

The Canadiens have allowed 198 power play opportunities and have given up 45 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 77% this year. That is 25th in the NHL. They average 34 shots per game and as a team shoot 7.53% for the season. They allow 32 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 91%, which is ranked 24th in the league. The Canadiens has 58 total points this season, ranking 27th in the NHL in offense. They are 29th in the league with 160 goals while they've given up 195 goals, which is 9th overall. They have had 188 power play opportunities and scored 40 goals on those chances for a percentage of 21%. That is 8th in the NHL.

Useful Team Statistics

As a team, the Islanders are 5th with 208 goals scored while they are 1st in the NHL with 228 goals allowed this year. They average 31 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 10.46%. They give up 36 shots per game and have a save percentage of 90%, putting them in 26th place in the league. The Islanders have a total of 65 points this year, which is 21st in the NHL. They have 41 power play goals on 197 opportunities for a percentage of 21%. That ranks their power play unit 13th. They've allowed 183 power play opportunities and have given up 47 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 74%, which is 30th overall.

Advanced Statistics

Montreal has a Corsi percentage of 50.6% as they've tried 3,948 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 3,852 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. That ranks them 11th in Corsi percentage. They are 12th in the NHL in Fenwick percentage with 51% as they have 2,874 shots while they've given up 2,765 attempts on defense. The Canadiens start possessions in the offensive zone 52.7% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 47.3% for the year. That puts them 6th and 26th in the league in zone percentages respectively. They have 1,853 face-off wins as opposed to 2,008 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 48%. That is 27th overall in the NHL. On defense Montreal has 1,605 hits and they've blocked 1,087 attempts from opposing offenses, which is 1st in the league.

Advanced Statistics

The Islanders are 31st in the league in starting possessions in the offensive zone, doing so 46.9% of the time. Their defensive zone percentage is at 53.1% for the season, which is 2nd in the NHL. They have 1,865 face-off wins compared to 1,988 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 48.4%. That is 28th in the league. On defense New York has 1,439 hits and they have blocked 988 shots from the opposition, which is 8th in the league. New York is 29th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 47.2% as they've attempted 3,652 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 4,082 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage of 46.5% ranks 30th as they have 2,688 attempts while they have given up 3,094 shots on the defensive end.

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

Tony's Pick: Take New York -140

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