PREMIUM
**$20 TUESDAY** >> Rogers' 10* TOTAL DOMINATION!
(NHL) Montreal vs. Vancouver,
Total: 5.50 | -120.00 Under
Result: Win
Total: 5.50 | -120.00 Under
Result: Win
The set-up: The Montreal Canadiens are 14-15-4 (32 points) and the Vancouver Canucks are 15-15-4 (34 points), as the two clubs get set to meet Tuesday night at Rogers Centre. Both teams will be missing key players due to injuries. Montreal head coach Claude Julien revealed that top defenseman Shea Weber will not play due to a foot injury, while the Canucks could be without top scorer Brock Boeser (17 goals & 13 assists) and one of their best defensemen, Chris Tanev, while others definitely will miss the game. A .500 record is no surprise for Vancouver (Canucks' 69 points last season were better than only the Avalanche's league-low total of 48), but Montreal's 32 points leaves them out of playoff position as well, which is quite a drop-off from a club which had 103 points last season to top the Atlantic Division.
Montreal: The Canadiens put together a five-game winning streak from Nov. 25 through Dec 2 but have who have now dropped four of five, as a seven-game road trip continues here against the Vancouver Canucks. It marks just the second game of the trip for Montreal, which won't return home until the calendar turns to 2018 (Jan. 2). The Canadiens have just nine goals in their last five games, which is not conducive to winning. Weber has played in all six games this month but coach Claude Julien said his top defenseman continues to be bothered by his foot injury. "It's a long season, and it's the type of injury that he couldn't continue playing with," Julien said. "We'll manage it properly over the next couple of days and weeks." Julien juggled his lines at Monday's practice in an effort to jump-start the offense, reuniting captain Max Pacioretty with Jonathan Drouin and Paul Byron on the top line.
Vancouver:The Canucks also know all about struggling offensively, as they have scored just 10 times during a 1-5-0 slide. A run-down of Vancouver's injury woes takes time. Boeser,, who is considered a strong candidate for NHL rookie of the year, was hurt while blocking a Mark Giordano shot Sunday in Vancouver's 6-1 loss to the Calgary Flames. He left the arena on crutches and sporting a walking boot. The Canucks called up Reid Boucher from their AHL farm club in Utica, N.Y., on Monday as an apparent replacement. However, according to a radio report, Boeser did not sustain a fracture. Tanev missed the Sunday game due to an undisclosed injury sustained last week against the Nashville Predators. Even so, the Canucks returned defenseman Ashton Sautner to Utica on Monday. The Canucks also have been without injured top center Bo Horvat (foot), winger Sven Baertschi (undisclosed) and Erik Gudbranson (wrist) lately, and winger Derek Dorsett's career-ending neck injury in November continues to haunt the team. However, head coach Travis Green is confident that his players will not dwell on the misfortune. Is he just "whistling past teh graveyard?"
The pick: The Canadiens have won three in a row versus the Canucks but they have lost 13 of 16 (3-11-2) against Western Conference opponents and are 1-6-1 versus the Pacific Division this season. Both clubs are struggling to score but Montreal come in allowing 3.57 GPG on the road, while Vancouver is allowing 3.18 GPG at home. That spells OVER and I'll make it a 10* play.
Montreal: The Canadiens put together a five-game winning streak from Nov. 25 through Dec 2 but have who have now dropped four of five, as a seven-game road trip continues here against the Vancouver Canucks. It marks just the second game of the trip for Montreal, which won't return home until the calendar turns to 2018 (Jan. 2). The Canadiens have just nine goals in their last five games, which is not conducive to winning. Weber has played in all six games this month but coach Claude Julien said his top defenseman continues to be bothered by his foot injury. "It's a long season, and it's the type of injury that he couldn't continue playing with," Julien said. "We'll manage it properly over the next couple of days and weeks." Julien juggled his lines at Monday's practice in an effort to jump-start the offense, reuniting captain Max Pacioretty with Jonathan Drouin and Paul Byron on the top line.
Vancouver:The Canucks also know all about struggling offensively, as they have scored just 10 times during a 1-5-0 slide. A run-down of Vancouver's injury woes takes time. Boeser,, who is considered a strong candidate for NHL rookie of the year, was hurt while blocking a Mark Giordano shot Sunday in Vancouver's 6-1 loss to the Calgary Flames. He left the arena on crutches and sporting a walking boot. The Canucks called up Reid Boucher from their AHL farm club in Utica, N.Y., on Monday as an apparent replacement. However, according to a radio report, Boeser did not sustain a fracture. Tanev missed the Sunday game due to an undisclosed injury sustained last week against the Nashville Predators. Even so, the Canucks returned defenseman Ashton Sautner to Utica on Monday. The Canucks also have been without injured top center Bo Horvat (foot), winger Sven Baertschi (undisclosed) and Erik Gudbranson (wrist) lately, and winger Derek Dorsett's career-ending neck injury in November continues to haunt the team. However, head coach Travis Green is confident that his players will not dwell on the misfortune. Is he just "whistling past teh graveyard?"
The pick: The Canadiens have won three in a row versus the Canucks but they have lost 13 of 16 (3-11-2) against Western Conference opponents and are 1-6-1 versus the Pacific Division this season. Both clubs are struggling to score but Montreal come in allowing 3.57 GPG on the road, while Vancouver is allowing 3.18 GPG at home. That spells OVER and I'll make it a 10* play.
