NHL Best Bets for March 28: Montreal Has Something to Fight For
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Eric Kelly
- March 28, 2025
Top NHL Pick: Canadiens +1.5 (+100) at BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review)
We head into the final weeks of the NHL regular season with plenty of teams having something to play for, be it a higher seed come post-season or just making the post-season, it will be a job well done for some teams, including our first picks of the night, the Montreal Canadiens.
Elsewhere, we are looking to stay with the best ATS team in the NHL (the Anaheim Ducks) as they seek to dampen the New York Rangers’ playoff chances with a win tonight.
Montreal Canadiens vs. Carolina Hurricanes
Friday, March 28, 2025 – 07:00 PM EDT at Lenovo Center
Canadiens Not to Be Written Off
Although the Carolina Hurricanes are a superior team to the Montreal Canadiens, that’s not to say we do not believe the Canadiens can win a once-off game. Of course, the best of seven might be a different ball game, but overall, there hasn’t been much difference between these two teams across the previous 20 NHL games, with the Hurricanes picking up 23 points and the Canadiens 22 points.
The Montreal Canadiens are fighting for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference along with five other teams, and given the fact that they come into this game 0-3, they will be eager to cause an upset tonight to keep themselves in the post-season race.
Montreal & Carolina Trends & Facts
- The Montreal Canadiens have the 7th best ATS record in the NHL, going 41-29.
- The Carolina Hurricanes have gone 33-38 ATS thus far this season (the 11th lowest in the NHL).
- Montreal is 21-14 ATS on the road this season.
- There have been five shutouts between these two teams in the previous 10 matchups.
The Pick
At the very least, we expect the Montreal Canadiens to show up tonight. Okay, they could still lose, but we feel they will have to fight here, having blown their prime position with three losses in a row.
Currently, the Canadiens at +1.5 on the PK line is set at +100 NHL betting odds. We would lay as little juice as -105/-110 for this line but try your best to get the plus money here.
Carolina needs some wins to secure their 2nd spot in the Conference, but there is no urgent rush as they are guaranteed a spot in the postseason, unlike the Montreal Canadiens.
NHL Pick: Canadiens +1.5 (+100) at BetOnlineÂ
New York Rangers vs. Anaheim Ducks
Friday, March 28, 2025 – 10:00 PM EDT at Honda Center
Ducks to Stay Dominating on Home Ice
Despite the Anaheim Ducks lingering down in 12th position in the Western Conference, they have had the best ATS record in the NHL this season and the 3rd best on home ice. Albeit the Ducks might not be anywhere near the best in the league, they have proven for the large part of this season that they can keep games tight and very rarely lose by more than two goals.
Talking about the visiting New York Rangers, they have only managed a 30-42 ATS record this season, which is currently the 4th worst in the entire NHL.
New York & Anaheim Trends & Facts
- The total has gone over in 4 of Anaheim’s last 6 games against an opponent in the Eastern Conference.
- The Anaheim Ducks have had the best spread record in the NHL this season, having gone 49-22.
- The Ducks have accumulated 25.1 units on the PK line this season (based on 1u per bet)
- The Rangers are 1-4 in their last 5 games.
The Pick
We really believe this game could be an upset, and we like the Anaheim Ducks’ chances of causing an upset, meaning that we do like their moneyline odds at +230 to win this one, but we equally like the odds on the +1.5 PK line with the juice only as low as -120 with BetOnline.
With the Ducks proving all season long how strong they have been ATS, and the Rangers quite the opposite, it’s hard to make an argument for the Rangers to win this game by two or more goals, let alone win.
Yes, the Rangers are chasing a playoff spot and must win, but equally, they have known this for a long time and have only gone 3-7 in their last ten games.
NHL Pick: Ducks +1.5 (-120) at BetOnline
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.
