Maple Leafs vs. Canadiens Odds, Picks, Predictions for Monday’s NHL Showdown (Feb. 21)

Maple Leafs vs. Canadiens Odds

The Montreal Canadiens have won two games in a row under their new head coach, Martin St. Louis, but they will be playing their second game of a back-to-back after defeating the New York Islanders on Sunday in a shootout by a score of 3-2.

The Toronto Maple Leafs are coming off of a tough loss on Saturday night when the Blues beat them 6-3 on home ice.

Maple Leafs Offense Should Dominate

The Toronto Maple Leafs are an offensive juggernaut, and their big guns have looked very good as of late. Leading the way for Toronto is the American superstar, Auston Matthews, who is the third-leading scorer in the NHL with 33 goals on the season and 59 points. William Nylander, John Tavares and Mitch Marner have been right behind him, playing right up to par to help this Leafs team get back to the playoffs.

The Leafs have the fourth-best offense in the league right now, as they are averaging 3.58 goals per game on 34.7 shots on goal. One of the key contributors to the offensive success for Toronto is its power play. The Leafs currently have the best extra-man unit in the entire NHL, converting at a 31.6% rate. Their first unit is made up of Matthews, Nylander, Tavares and Marner, and the quarterback on the blue line is Morgan Reilly. Toronto's power play is an x-factor night in and night out.

The Leafs have also had very strong goaltending all season from Jack Campbell. Campbell has a record of 23-8-3 with a .922 save percentage and a +8.2 Goals Saved Above Expected. Campbell didn't have have his best showing in his last start as he allowed five goals on 33 shots, but he should be able to have a strong bounce back.

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Montreal Canadiens Looking For Three Straight Wins

The Montreal Canadiens are coming off of a huge road win on Long Island, led by goaltender Andrew Hammond who got his first start in the NHL in four years.

Montreal has had a horrible season, but it has looked like a completely different team since Martin St. Louis took over as the bench boss. The Canadiens have won back-to-back games in overtime against the St. Louis Blues and the New York Islanders, both games ending in a 3-2 score.

Montreal's biggest weakness this season has been finding offense. The Habs have been the worst team in the league offensively this season, as they are only averaging 2.2 goals per game on 29.5 shots on net.

The goaltending situation will be interesting in this one. The Canadiens haven't announced a starter yet, but Sam Montembeault should get the nod for Montreal. Sam Montembeault is 3-10-4 this season with a .895 save percentage and a -7.5 GSAx; he has not been very impressive. The Canadiens could decide to go back with Hammond who stopped 30 of 32 shots against the Islanders in his first NHL start this season. That is unlikely though because this is a back-to-back.

Maple Leafs vs. Canadiens Pick

There is no doubt that the Maple Leafs should be able to dominate this game, but the Canadiens always get up for this rivalry. These two teams have only met once thus far this season and it was opening night for them both. The Leafs won 2-1, but since then they have trended in opposite directions.

Toronto is the heavy favorite for all of the right reasons, but I am very confident that they will win this game. The Leafs should be able to get the job done in regulation, so I am going with the Leafs in 60 minutes.

Pick: Toronto Maple Leafs to win in regulation -180