Saturday NHL Free Pick
(The Spread) – While the New Jersey Devils have undoubtedly played better hockey during the NHL season’s second half, it still has them outside the playoff picture as the season winds down.
On Saturday night at 7:00PM EST, the Devlis will try to continue their strong play as they entertain the Montreal Canadiens. New Jersey now has a 36-36-5 record overall and a 20-15-3 home mark after a 4-2 win Friday over visiting Philadelphia. Montreal is 41-30-7 overall and 18-19-1 on the road.
Oddsmakers from online sports book Sportsbook.com have made the Devils a -125 favorite for Saturday’s contest. The over/under total is currently sitting at 5 goals.
According to latest NHL trends, New Jersey is 10-5 ATS when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season. Montreal is 45-38 ATS revenging a loss versus opponent over the last seasons.
NHL Free Pick: While New Jersey is still playing very good hockey as its win over Philadelphia Friday attests to, eventually the reality has to sink it. The Devils’ playoff chances are very slim at best and simply getting to this point has proved to be an extreme challenge. Playing the second end of a back-to-back against any team would be difficult, but against a playoff team such as the Montreal Canadiens that is fighting to maintain the sixth spot in the Eastern Conference might be too much for New Jersey to handle. After providing two winning underdog picks in the NHL last weekend, I am sticking with the plus money again in Carey Price and Montreal.
SATURDAY NHL FREE PICK: MONTREAL CANADIENS +105
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