Not much in sports can match the excitement of a Game 7 in the NHL, and we get our first of the 2008 postseason on Monday night in Montreal, where the Canadiens are -210 money line betting favorites (over/under: 5 goals) on WagerWeb.com to beat Boston and avoid a huge collapse.
The Habs won the first game, 4-1. And when the Canadiens took Game 2 in overtime, they'd beaten the Bruins 13 consecutive times over two seasons. They eventually took a 3-1 lead in this series, and the Bruins are 0-20 in playoff series they have trailed by that deficit. This is the first time they have forced a Game 7 in that situation. Boston, which hasn't won a playoff series since 1999, has never come back from a 2-0 deficit, either.
The Bruins are 9-7 in Game 7s, winning six of their last seven. But they have only played in one since 1994, losing that one to Montreal in '04. This will be only the fourth Game 7 on the road for the franchise (it has lost them all).
As good as Habs goalie Carey Price was in the first four games of this series is as shaky as he has been in the past two: giving up four third-period goals for the second game in a row after allowing just five in the first four games.
Meanwhile, Boston goalie Tim Thomas has limited a Canadiens team that scored 24 times on him in six regular season games to only 10 goals in the past five games.
"Obviously, we have the confidence of knowing we can beat these guys," Bruins coach Claude Julien said.The Canadiens are 26-0 in playoff series they have led 3-1. The Habs are 4-2 in their six previous Game 7 showdowns with the B's. This will be Montreal's first Game 7 on home ice since 1992.
"I have to feel confident," Montreal coach Guy Carbonneau said. "We went through a lot of challenges. We weren't supposed to be in the playoffs, finish first overall. We always found another level. We always responded well to what's in front of us. I don't think it'll be different (on Monday)."
Boston has gotten a spark from Phil Kessel. He was one of only three Bruins to play all 82 regular-season games, scoring 19 goals with 18 assists for 37 points. He led the league with five deciding shootout goals. He even notched his first career hat trick. Yet he was benched for Games 2, 3, and 4 against the Canadiens.
He has been the best player on the ice the past two games, including notching two goals in Game 6.
"The last two games, he's been unbelievable," said Julien. "If he wants to keep proving me wrong, I can take it."
During the regular season, the Canadiens led the league on the power play (24.2 percent) but are just are 2-for-29 against the 28th-best penalty-killing unit.
Perhaps the Game 6 return of Captain Saku Koivu will help the Habs. He played for the first time since he broke a bone in his foot on March 28. He had two assists Saturday and won 15 of 21 faceoffs.
Betting trends: Under is 7-2-2 in Bruins' last 11 overall. ... Under is 7-2-2 in Bruins' last 11 road games. ... Under is 6-2-1 in Habs' last 9 overall. ... Under is 8-3-1 in Montreal's last 12 home games. ... Bruins are 6-20-1 in the last 27 meetings in Montreal. ... Bruins are 16-35-1 in the last 52 meetings.
No comments:
Post a Comment