The Habs Heading To Columbus In Hopes Of Ending Their Skid

The Habs have announced that Jakub Dobes will be getting the start tonight against the Blue Jackets. He will have a chance to bounce back from his worst performance of his NHL career on Thursday when he allowed 5 goals on 13 shots before being pulled ahead of the 3rd period in the Canadiens’ 7-0 loss to the Dallas Stars. Although Dobes wasn’t particularly at fault for the majority of the goals he allowed, the defence in front of him really struggled in their own end that night. However, at the same time, he wasn’t coming up with the big saves that he normally makes. 

Dobes still has a solid 6-1-1 despite two outings in a row that have been tough on him mentally, which have dropped his save percentage to .901 and his GAA to 2.70. The positive of his getting a game just 4 days after his worst performance is that he has a chance to put it completely behind him tonight. Hopefully, the Habs coaching staff helped build up his confidence ahead of tonight, or it could be a long night.

The Canadiens will also have new line combinations compared to Saturday, as Kirby Dach went down with a fractured foot during Saturday’s game against the Boston Bruins, which will keep him out of action for the next 4-6 weeks. Forward Joshua Roy will draw in for his 2nd game of the season, looking to prove that he can make an offensive impact against Columbus. The exact forward lines with Rou added and Dach subtracted have not yet been revealed by the Habs.

However, Daily Faceoff has Roy projected to play with Jake Evans and Josh Anderson on the 3rd line tonight. While Zack Bolduc will move up onto a line with Oliver Kapanen and Ivan Demidov. That line of Bolduc-Kapanen-Demidov has the potential to be a very good offensive line if they are together. It will be interesting to see how they play over the next few games.

In the nets for the Blue Jackets tonight will be Jet Greaves, who has a 5-4-2 record along with a .904 save percentage and 2.80 GAA. He will be a challenge for the Habs tonight, but compared to his NHL debut last year, he has returned to earth. In fact, Greaves and Dobes have similar paths as goaltenders, since they both have had really strong debuts in the league but have cooled down a bit. The battle between these goaltenders should be a fun one, as they can have a really great night but could also struggle quite a bit.

For bettors tonight, after Saturday’s 3-2 loss to the Bruins on Saturday, the streak of 9 consecutive games where the Over paid out ended. With that being said, with the Habs’ struggles on offence and the Blue Jackets’ scoring going hot and cold, it may be time to take the Under on 6.5 goals in tonight’s game. The Canadiens have won 7 of the last 9 meetings against the Blue Jackets, and are +115 road underdogs to win tonight’s matchup. As for a player prop, Demidov has gone scoreless in his last 3 games, which is his longest pointless streak to date. He should be primed for a breakout night, and +105 odds on him recording at least a point seem like a good bet against the Blue Jackets. If we parlay all 3 lines, it can boost your odds for tonight to +600. Create a Same Game Parlay tonight for your shot at winning big.

Tonight will be a tough matchup for the Canadiens to get past their struggles, but this is a very winnable game for a team that has been in such a slump.

What are your predictions for tonight’s game?