Blue Jackets Will Crush Canadiens

Canadiens vs. Blue Jackets, 7:00 ET

A nice win on the ice for us yesterday as the Penguins and Predators played to an under and it went into OT. The fact that it went under with an OT isn't exactly a huge deal, but I've been burned on a lot of games that end 3-3 and we have under 6.5 this season. It was nice to be on the side of one that had the 6.5 total but just four goals heading into the end of regulation. In any case, now we get to focus on today's contest, a game between the Canadiens and the Blue Jackets.

The Canadiens are 9-10-2 to start the season and a fairly average 4-4-2 record away from their home ice. They haven't played good hockey all year, but lately, they are just 2-3 over their past five. They are in the midst of a five-game road trip, with this being the final game. Part of the reason for not liking them much tonight is the odd travel schedule. They started in Boston, then headed to the West Coast and played three straight in California. Now they head back to the middle of the country to play in Columbus, Ohio. Then, they have to play the Florida Panthers in Montreal the very next night. That's not doing them any favors. On the season, they've scored just 2.71 goals per game and are allowing almost 3.5 to opponents. One of their big struggles is against the Power Play with over a quarter of opponent attempts resulting in a goal. The only redeeming quality in this one for them is that the Blue Jackets are one of the worst Power Play teams in hockey, scoring on just 11.1% of attempts.

MONTREAL, QC - NOVEMBER 09: A view of the NHL crest on a net. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)

Columbus doesn't have a better record than the Canadiens, but this should be a game that they can win. I've already talked about the schedule disadvantage of the Canadiens. The Blue Jackets do have to play a back-to-back, with this being the second half, but at least both games are at home for them. The first game, last night, was against the Bruins and the Blue Jackets were able to win that one 5-2. That was good for their third win in the past five games. Their offense is starting to show signs of life as well with five goals last night and seven goals a week ago against the Blackhawks. Defensively, they've allowed 3.39 goals against per game, but over their past five games, they've allowed an average of just 2.8 goals per game. With Spencer Martin playing last night, it is likely that they will put Elvis Merzlinkins into the net to thwart the Canadiens offense. He's been a bottom-third of the league goalie this season but has performed pretty well at home overall.

In the first meeting of the season, the Canadiens were at home and were able to take the game. That was a 4-3 loss for Merzlinkins, and he did allow all four goals to find the back of the net. I'm not sure we are aligned for the same story tonight. Sometimes that home ice can make a difference and with the way the two teams are playing, I do feel like the Blue Jackets are in better form. Also, looking at last game, the Blue Jackets outshot the Canadiens. This is a game the Blue Jackets should get some revenge and I'll take them on the moneyline.

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