Habs Looking To Stay Hot Against Hurricanes Tonight

After Jacob Fowler had a solid performance on Saturday night to help lead the Canadiens to a 4-1 victory on the road against the Nashville Predators, it is no surprise that Jakub Dobes will be getting the start today given that there are fewer than 24 hours between the start of both games. Dobes has been among the best goaltenders in the league since the trade deadline on March 6th, as he has a 5-2 record with a. 931 save percentage and 2.00 GAA in 7 games during that timeline. He also has the 4th-best winning percentage among goaltenders who have had a minimum of 20 starts in the NHL this season, as he continues to get the job done for the Habs. On Tuesday, he made 33 straight saves after allowing two early goals against the Hurricanes. Will he be able to continue to shut down the high-volume Canes tonight?

In terms of tonight’s lineup, Josh Anderson is a game-time decision after he left Saturday’s game in the 2nd period with an illness. Given that the game is less than 24 hours away, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Arber Xhekaj be forced to enter the lineup, and the Habs need to go with 11 forwards and 7 defensemen for today’s late afternoon matchup. However, even if Anderson isn’t able to go, there is still the possibility that Alexandre Texier can draw back in after missing the last three games with a lower-body injury. It remains to be seen until game time what the final lineup will look like; hopefully, the Habs can go with the traditional 12 forwards and 6 defensemen setup.

Since goaltender Brandon Bussi played on Saturday, Frederik Andersen is expected to get the start for the 2nd time in under a week against the Habs. The veteran netminder struggled against the Habs on Tuesday, allowing 4 goals on just 18 shots in what was a very efficient offensive night for the Canadiens. Andersen has had a tough season as he lost his starting job to Bussi, on top of having just a . 871 save percentage and a 3.15 GAA on the year. The Habs will be looking to light up Andersen again today, but even if Bussi somehow gets the start for the second day in a row, the Canadiens have scored 6 goals on him and will look to bring back their success against him from a 7-5 win back on January 1st. However, aside from that night, Bussi has been one of the most successful goaltenders in the league this season, so it could be intriguing if he plays better this time around vs. the Habs.

Since the Habs have had big offensive performances against the Hurricanes in both their meetings this year regardless of the goalie, betting the over 6.5 goals for today’s late afternoon matchup seems like a smart move to cash in on. However, at the same time, Dobes is still playing some of the best hockey of his career, so he could keep the game total down; nonetheless, the over is the best trend for the night. On the moneyline, the Canadiens are listed as +145 road underdogs despite their success against the Hurricanes this season as well as both teams playing the second half of a back-to-back. With that being said, taking the Habs to win is looking like a very good value bet.

Nick Suzuki has 8 assists in his last 5 games, including one against the Hurricanes on Tuesday. With just 10 games and needing 12 points to reach the 100-point mark, as well as his linemate Cole Caufield needing 5 goals in that span to reach 50 goals, Suzuki will surely be looking to set up offence again today. He is coming off a multi-assist game on Saturday. Suzuki’s line to record 2+ assists is listed at +240. Do you think Suzuki will have another multi-assist game tonight?

Do you think the Habs will sweep the season series with the Hurricanes tonight?