Senators a Slim Favorite Over Rival Canadiens Wednesday

Quinn Allen
By , Updated on: Feb 20, 2023 07:00 PM
Senators a Slim Favorite Over Rival Canadiens Wednesday

It's an all-Canadian matchup on Wednesday night in the nation's capital as the Montreal Canadiens visit the Ottawa Senators at the Canadian Tire Centre. It's the battle between two sub-par teams who aren't doing too well to begin the season. The Canadiens are coming off an impressive shootout victory over the Calgary Flames though, a definite confidence booster. The Senators meanwhile will be looking for their third win in a row here after blanking the Anaheim Ducks on Monday by a score of 3-0. Keep reading for the Canadiens vs Senators picks.

Before we get into the odds and predictions for this game make sure to check out our online sportsbook reviews, and the top NHL betting sites.

Canadiens vs Senators Odds

BetOnlinePuck LineMoneylineTotal
Montreal Canadiens+1.5 (-150)+166Ov 6 (-119)
Ottawa Senators-1.5 (+130)-184Un 6 (+108)

Ottawa is favored at 1.5 on the puck line and -184 on the moneyline. Montreal comes back at +166. The total is set at six goals. The Sens have won five consecutive meetings with the Habs dating back to 2021. The over was hit in four of those games. Something to keep an eye on here.

Montreal vs Ottawa Betting Outlook

The Canadiens currently sit in fifth place in the Atlantic with a 14-12-2 record and haven't really shined in any particular area. Their offense is underwhelming as can be, scoring just 2.87 goals per game, which ranks 27th in the league. Montreal is registering the lowest number of shots on target per contest in the NHL, too. Nick Suzuki leads the way with 14 goals and 15 assists in 28 games, while Cole Caufield has scored 16 times and provided another nine for his teammates.

Defensively, the Habs are allowing 3.46 goals, which is 23rd in the league. Their penalty kill is half-decent though. Montreal showed some guts against Calgary the other night, coming back to beat the Flames courtesy of shootout goals from Suzuki and Kirby Dach. The Canadiens didn't find their breakthrough until the third period when Juraj Slafkovsky found Josh Anderson for a simple tap-in with just over a minute left in regulation. That forced OT and ultimately the shootout. Jake Allen made 34 saves in goal, but it will be Sam Montembeault in between the posts Wednesday.

Ottawa is in good shape at the moment but it doesn't hide the fact they're below Montreal in the Atlantic Division at 12-14-2, which puts them in seventh place. Also, the Sens are just 7-8-0 at home and actually play slightly better on the road. The offense is scoring 3.07 goals per night and honestly should probably be finding the back of the net a lot more. They're registering 33.9 shots on goal which ranks sixth in the NHL. Ottawa isn't putting away its opportunities enough. Brady Tkachuk is enjoying a solid campaign, posting a team-best 12 goals and 19 assists in 28 contests.

Tim Stutzle and Claude Giroux round out the scoring, both combining for 22 goals and 31 assists. Stutzle suffered an injury the other night though and may not play here. The Senators' average defense really stepped us vs. Anaheim, a team that has two serious weapons in Trevor Zegras and Troy Terry. Cam Talbot earned his first shutout in an Ottawa uniform while making 32 saves. Offensively, Alex DeBrincat scored two of the team's three goals, both on the power play. Parker Kelly netted the other. Aside from the Stutzle injury, Tyler Motte also left early after what the team is calling an upper-body issue. He's listed day-to-day.

Canadiens vs Senators Picks

It's hard to ignore Ottawa's success against Montreal. But, I'm going to focus on the over here. As previously mentioned, it's almost always a lock in this matchup in recent memory. Expect no shortage of goals.

Montreal Canadiens vs Ottawa Senators To hit the over in goals
Ov 6 (-119)
BetOnline

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Meet the author

Quinn Allen

Quinn Allen leverages his broadcast journalism degree and passion for sports in his betting previews and analysis. Based in Kelowna, Canada, he has emerged as an expert voice with picks featured on OSB, MTS, SBD, and as a ClutchPoints editor. With a lifelong fandom of...

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