Montreal Canadiens vs Minnesota Wild Prediction, 12/21/2023 NHL Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Montreal Canadiens vs Minnesota Wild

Date: Thursday, December 21, 2023

Location: Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, MN

TV: Bally Sports North

Odds/Point Spread: Canadiens (+145) Wild (-177)

The Minnesota Wild (13-13-4) will try to beat the Montreal Canadiens (14-13-4) at Xcel Energy Center on Thursday. The odds on this game have the Canadiens at +145 and the Wild are coming in at -177. The total has been set at 7.

The Montreal Canadiens will head into their next game feeling good after earning a 3-2 win over the Jets their last time out. Montreal compiled 6 minutes in the box in this contest. The Canadiens played like an average offensive team in the victory. In addition, they had 3 power play attempts and were able to score 2 goals. For the matchup, they netted 3 out of the 26 shots they attempted.

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In terms of their goal scoring prowess, the Montreal Canadiens have accumulated 84 goals (28th in the NHL) on the year and have allowed 103. For the year, they have tallied 32 points and their points percentage is sitting at .516. Montreal comes into the game with 111 power play opportunities and they have scored 20 goals during those chances, earning them a rate of 18.02%. When playing at even strength, the Canadiens let the opposition score 74 goals while earning 64 when they are on offense. Montreal has attempted 912 shots and is the owner of a shot percentage of 9.2%. The Canadiens have seen 1,064 shots taken against them and hold a save percentage of .903. Montreal Canadiens opponents have tallied 108 power play tries (6th in the NHL) and have racked up 29 goals in those chances.

The man in goal for this game is Sam Montembeault. Opponents have racked up 363 goals versus Montembeault in his pro career and his goals against average per contest is 3.40. Montembeault has been involved in 117 games during his NHL career. His save percentage currently is at .898 during his 6,406 minutes played. He has a win-loss mark of 40-49-14 and he started in 101 games. Over the course of his career, Montembeault has recorded 50 quality starts and his quality starts percentage is at .495. Montembeault has seen 3,546 shots taken against him and he has 3,183 total saves.

In their last contest, Minnesota opposed the Bruins in a matchup where the Wild got the win by a mark of 4-3. They had 1 power play chance in this outing and notched 1 on that try. The Wild recorded 4 goals out of the 30 shots on goal they were seeking.

On the season, the Minnesota Wild have earned a total of 90 goals, 30 points, in addition to a points percentage of .500. They have granted a total of 96 goals to be scored by of a combination of 66 goals at even strength and 30 goals while they had less men on the ice. The Wild have earned 73 goals at even strength and 17 goals (23rd in hockey) while on the power play. They have earned 99 chances on the power play and they have accumulated a power play percentage of 17.17%. Minnesota has taken 908 shots (25th in professional hockey) and has accumulated a shot percentage of 9.91%, while allowing the opposition 925 shots. They have recorded a penalty kill rate of 72.22% on their oppositions 108 power play opportunities, and their save percentage currently sits at 89.6%.

For the opposition you are going to see Filip Gustavsson in net. Gustavsson is sitting with a career mark of 40-30-12 and has played in 85 games. Gustavsson's percentage of quality starts comes out to 62.0% and he has made 49 quality starts in his professional career. He has accrued 2,349 stops out of the 2,562 shots taken, giving him a save percentage of .917. Teams are averaging 2.59 goals per contest and he has surrendered 213 goals overall. He has been a starter 79 games and has accumulated 4,925 minutes.

Who will win tonight's NHL game against the spread or moneyline?

Josh's Pick: Take Montreal (+145)

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