The Tampa Bay Lightning (25-16-3) head to the Bell Centre to face the Montreal Canadiens (23-19-4) on Tuesday night in what promises to be a pivotal Atlantic Division matchup.
Both teams enter the contest with momentum, as the Lightning are coming off an impressive 5-1 victory over Detroit while the Canadiens recently secured a thrilling 5-4 win against New York.
Tampa Bay's offensive powerhouse Nikita Kucherov, who leads the team with 68 points from 21 goals and 47 assists, will look to continue his stellar form after recording a goal and two assists in their last outing.
The Canadiens, led by Nick Suzuki's 47 points and Cole Caufield's 24 goals, have shown remarkable improvement on home ice, winning three of their last four games.
While the Lightning hold a strong historical advantage with a 7-2-1 record in their last 10 meetings against Montreal, the Canadiens currently lead this season's three-game series 1-0.
With several key players listed as questionable for both sides, including Brayden Point and Victor Hedman for Tampa Bay, and Alex Newhook and David Savard for Montreal, this matchup could come down to which team better manages their depth and special teams performance.
Montreal Canadiens vs. Tampa Bay Lightning: who will win?
For tonight's Montreal Canadiens vs Tampa Bay Lightning matchup, our predictive model gives the Lightning a 54% chance of defeating the Canadiens.
Tampa Bay Lightning: 54% win probability
- League-leading offense (165 goals scored in 45 games)
- Better overall record (25 wins vs 23 for Montreal)
- Superior goal differential (-128 GA vs Montreal's -155 GA)
Montreal Canadiens: 46% win probability
- Poor defensive record (155 goals against in 46 games)
- Lower points total (50 points vs Tampa's 53 in fewer games)
- Inconsistent recent form (WLWWL vs Tampa's LWWLW)
At Sporting Post, our unique prediction model combines insights from top NHL experts. Instead of sifting through hundreds of expert analyses across the web, you can rely on our predictions to understand the market's overall sentiment. We scan trusted sources, analyzing predictions, data, and opinions, and our AI assigns a confidence level to each prediction. We then average these levels to produce an 'expert opinion' win probability—reflecting the collective intelligence of the industry's leading NHL experts.
Montreal Canadiens vs. Tampa Bay Lightning odds
| Montreal Canadiens | Tampa Bay Lightning | |
|---|---|---|
| moneyline | +130 (via DraftKings Sportsbook) | -150 (via BetMGM Sportsbook) |
Key stats
- 1The Montreal Canadiens have won 23 out of 46 matches this season.
- 2The Tampa Bay Lightning have won 25 out of 45 matches this season.
- 3With 50 points, the Montreal Canadiens holds the 10th position in the league standings.
- 4Tampa Bay Lightning's 53 points place them 6th in the rankings.
Montreal Canadiens vs. Tampa Bay Lightning form
Montreal Canadiens vs. Tampa Bay Lightning head to head
Montreal Canadiens
33%
Tampa Bay Lightning
67%
Dec 29, 2024
Tampa Bay Lightning
2 : 5
Montreal Canadiens
Apr 4, 2024
Montreal Canadiens
4 : 7
Tampa Bay Lightning
Mar 3, 2024
Tampa Bay Lightning
4 : 3
Montreal Canadiens
Jan 1, 2024
Tampa Bay Lightning
4 : 3
Montreal Canadiens
Nov 8, 2023
Montreal Canadiens
3 : 5
Tampa Bay Lightning
Mar 21, 2023
Montreal Canadiens
3 : 2
Tampa Bay Lightning
