NHL Preview & Picks – April 11th, 2022

We only have one game on the slate tonight in the NHL. The Winnipeg Jets travel to Montreal to take on the Canadiens. The Habs’ have been eliminated from the post season while the Jets need everything to go their way to try and grab a wild card spot. 

Winnipeg Jets @ Montreal Canadiens

• Time: 7:00 PM ET
• TV Coverage: ESPN+
• Winnipeg Jets: 34-28-11, 6th Central (15-13-8 Away)
• Montreal Canadiens: 20-41-11, 8th Atlantic (10-20-4 Home)

Trends:

• Winnipeg are 1-4 SU in their last 5 games.
• The total has gone OVER in 5 of Winnipeg’s last 6 games on the road.
• Montreal are 2-5 SU in their last 7 games.
• The total has gone OVER in 13 of Montreal’s last 19 games

Previous Matchups:

• March 1, 2022
  • MTL (4) @ WPG (8)
    • MTL +190, WPG -230, O/U 6.0 (-105/-115)

Preview:

Winnipeg snapped a four-game losing streak on Sunday defeating the Senators 4-3. On the year the Jets are 4-4 on no day’s rest but 1-3-1 after a win so the trends don’t look good for them. 

The Canadiens are coming off a tough loss in Toronto losing 3-2 on Saturday. Jake Allen, who has been their starting goalie all season suffered and injury and didn’t return.  Montreal has a tough schedule ahead as they play four games in the next six days. 

The Jets haven’t been as dominant offensive as of late. On the year they rank 16th averaging 3.07 Goals For per game but in their last ten that number has dropped to 2.80. They’re generating less shots on goal and haven’t been capitalizing on the chances they do create. One area that has been better is their Power Play which has been converting at a higher rate than their season average. If the Jets do want to try and make a push in their last 10 or so games, this offense needs to wake up. 

Just like their offense, Winnipeg’s defense has been worse lately. While the difference isn’t major, they have been worse giving up an average of 3.20 Goals Against in their most recent ten games. Their Penalty Kill has been atrocious during that stretch with a 64.29% success rate. On the year they’re almost 11% higher than that for reference. 

Eric Comrie will start in net for the Jets tonight with Connor Hellebuyck getting the nod last night. His last start came against the Maple Leafs on March 31st where he allowed six goals against. That was the most goals he’s allowed this season in a single game, so we’ll see how he rebounds tonight. Overall, he has a 2.68 GAA and a .912 SV%. 

The Canadiens offense has been much better averaging 3.10 Goals For in their last ten compared to their season average of 2.60, which ranks 27th. Oddly enough, they’ve ben averaging less Shots on Goal but have increased their Shooting Percentage by 3%. Their Power Play continues to struggle only converting on three of their last twenty-seven attempts (10.71%). They haven’t had a great man advantage all year, but this has been the worst stretch for them by far. 

Their defense also hasn’t been great all season allowing an average of 3.79 Goals Against per game, ranking 31st. That number has jumped up to 3.90 in their last ten games. They have allowed a staggering 41.10 Shots Against per game during that ten-game stretch. 

Sam Montembeault is expected to get the start in net tonight. He came in for Jake Allen who was hurt in their most recent game. He has faced Winnipeg once this year where he was awful, allowing seven goals against on 23 shots before getting pulled. 

Pick:

• Cole Caufield over 2.5 Shots on Goal (-150) – DraftKings

  Caufield has gone over this number in four of his last five games. In their lone matchup against the Jets this season he recorded 3 Shots on Goal. Winnipeg is also averaging 35.90 Shots on Goal Against per game in their last 10 which is more than their season average. He’s been on an absolute tear in the past few games recording at last one point in his last four. All of this information can be found at linemate.io.

Best of luck, and as always you can find me on Twitter @GatorBetting and Instagram @Gator_Sports_Betting.