New York Islanders at Montreal Canadiens NHL Picks & Predictions 2/28/2018

Wednesday, February 28, 2018

Bell Centre

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The New York Islanders head to Bell Centre to take on the Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday, February 28, 2018. The opening line for this contest has the Islanders at -105 and the Canadiens at -105.

New York has a record of 29-27-7 this year and away from home they have a record of 13-16-3-1. They are 6th in the Metropolitan Division. They have tallied 207 goals and surrendered 225 goals for a point differential of -18. For the year they have an ATS mark of 29-34-0 and an over/under record of 38-22-0. Montreal has a record of 23-29-10 including 15-10-8-4 on home ice this year. They are 6th in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 157 goals and have given up 194 for a goal differential of -37. Their record against the spread is 23-38-0 while their over/under mark is 26-33-0.

Valuable New York Islanders Betting Trends

The New York Islanders are 29-34-0 straight up this year

The New York Islanders are 38-22-0 against the over/under this season

Important Montreal Canadiens Betting Trends

The Montreal Canadiens are 23-38-0 straight up this year

The Montreal Canadiens are 26-33-0 against the over/under this season

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)

Key Montreal Canadiens Injuries

12/18/17 D Shea Weber Foot IR (12/17)
10/22/17 RW Ales Hemsky Concussion IR (10/20)
02/26/18 LW Kerby Rychel Acquired is "?" Wednesday vs NY Islanders
02/26/18 D Mike Reilly Acquired is "?" Wednesday vs NY Islanders
02/26/18 D Rinat Valiev Acquired is "?" Wednesday vs NY Islanders
02/23/18 GO Carey Price Concussion IR (02/20)
01/15/18 RW Andrew Shaw Lower Body IR (01/14)

Player Spotlight

Josh Bailey has scored 62 total points this year for the Islanders. He has 15 goals this season with 110 shots on net, giving him a shooting percentage of 14%. He has a total of 47 assists on the year and averages 18 minutes played per contest. Anders Lee averages 17.3 minutes of ice time per game this season. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 19% by tallying 30 goals on 160 attempts. He has 18 assists, giving him a total of 48 points on the year. Jaroslav Halak has 18 wins and 20 losses this season in goal for the Islanders. He has 1,486 shots against him and he's surrendered 132 goals. He's made 1,354 stops for a save percentage of 91%.

Player Spotlight

Brendan Gallagher has 36 total points this season for the Canadiens. He has 21 goals this year with 205 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 10%. He has a total of 15 assists on the year and averages 15.6 minutes played per contest. Max Pacioretty averages 19.1 minutes of ice time per contest. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 8% by scoring 17 goals on 210 attempts. He has 20 assists, giving him a total of 37 points on the year. Antti Niemi has 3 wins and 6 losses this season in net for the Canadiens. He has 388 shots against him and he's given up 42 goals. He's made 346 saves for a save percentage of 89%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Islanders have 65 total points this year, which is 20th in the NHL. They've scored 207 goals while giving up 225 scores, which has them ranked 5th and 1st respectively. They have had 195 power play chances and scored 41 goals on those opportunities for a percentage of 21%. That is 12th in the league. The Islanders have given up 181 power play opportunities and surrendered 46 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 75%, ranking them 30th when short-handed. They average 31 shots per contest and as a team shoot 10.56% for the year. They allow 36 shot attempts to their opposition per game and have a team save percentage of 90%, which is 25th in the league.

Useful Team Statistics

The Canadiens are 27th in the league with a total of 55 points this season. They have 39 power play goals on 185 chances for a percentage of 21%. That is 10th in the NHL. They've given up 193 power play opportunities and surrendered 45 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 77%, ranking 27th overall. As a team, the Canadiens are 29th with a total of 157 goals scored while they've given up 193 goals this season, ranking 9th in goals against. They average 34 shots per game and have a team shooting percentage of 7.58%. As a unit they give up 32 shots per contest and have a save percentage of 90%, putting them 24th overall in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

New York is 30th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 47%, as they've attempted 3,570 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 4,032 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is 46.3% as they have 2,638 attempts while they have given up 3,060 shots on the defensive end. That ranks them 31st in the league. The Islanders start possessions in the offensive zone 46.9% of the time, which is 31st in the league, while their defensive zone percentage is at 53.1% for the season. That is 2nd overall in the NHL. They have 1,848 face-off wins compared to 1,965 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 48.5%. That ranks them 22nd in the league. On defense New York has 1,400 hits and they have blocked 972 shots from the opposition, putting them 8th overall.

Advanced Statistics

The Canadiens are 6th in the league in starting possessions in the offensive zone, doing so 52.7% of the time. Their defensive zone percentage is at 47.3% for the season, which is 26th in the NHL. They have 1,811 face-off wins compared to 1,953 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 48.1%. That is 28th in the league. On defense Montreal has 1,557 hits and they have blocked 1,038 shots from the opposition, which is 1st in the league. Montreal is 11th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 50.9% as they've attempted 3,842 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 3,704 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage of 51.2% ranks 12th as they have 2,800 attempts while they have given up 2,666 shots on the defensive end.

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

Tony's Pick: Take New York -105

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