The Eastern Conference Final was expected to be the more competitive of the two ongoing series in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and through the first two games, it’s certainly delivered. The Montreal Canadiens blew out the Carolina Hurricanes on the road to steal Game 1, but the Canes battled back with an overtime goal from Nikolaj Ehlers to win Game 2. After the action in Raleigh over the first two outings, the series heads northward to the Bell Centre in Montreal for the next matchup tonight.

Here’s a Hurricanes vs. Canadiens Game 3 prediction and pick for Monday’s NHL Playoffs action on DraftKings Sportsbook.

Hurricanes vs. Canadiens Game 3 prediction, preview

The opening game of this series was a stunning blowout in which the Canadiens scored four first-period goals to cruise to a 6-2 victory. It put their offensive ceiling on full display — no aberration given the collection of talent on the roster — but also came as a result of a now-rare stinker from Carolina goaltender Frederik Andersen. He allowed more goals in that one outing than he did across the entirety of each individual first-round series. The Hurricanes’ defense bounced back in major fashion in Game 2 by clamping the opposition to allow only 12 shots on goal, 10 of which Andersen stopped. That defensive masterclass from the team means plenty, especially if the netminder in front of them is regressing after a previously hot postseason in which he boasts a 1.55 GAA and .927 SV%.

Through the first two games of the series, Carolina has overall outperformed Montreal in both 5v5 and 5v4 play. The Hurricanes have a 4.82 to 3.62 edge in xGF at even strength, 22 high-danger chances to their opponent’s 19, plus a massive advantage in total chances for at 120 to 74 (per Natural Stat Trick). Neither team has recorded a goal on the power play yet, but the Canes also lead in 5v4 xGF at 1.04 to 0.07, also generating 14 total chances to just one for Montreal. These figures are particularly intriguing given that the opening matchup was a complete blowout that should’ve inflated the Canadiens’ numbers, but we see that they’ve been outmatched in terms of the underlying metrics.

Still, it is quite encouraging for Montreal to have the series tied at one game apiece as the action heads to home ice. While the Habs fell short in Game 2, they rallied late in the third period to force overtime in the first place and showed plenty of fight even despite being held in check as far as shot volume goes. Jakub Dobes continues to play great hockey of his own in the net with a SV% of .909 that looks fine on paper but doesn’t tell the full story. He’s saved 11.8 goals above expected this postseason with a 2.51 GAA, significantly outperforming a 3.23 xGAA. As long as he continues to keep the damage limited, Montreal has the scoring support to keep this series competitive so long as the team can put more pucks on the goal.

Hurricanes vs. Canadiens pick, best bet

DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Hurricanes as -142 road favorites to win on the Moneyline tonight, while the Canadiens come in as a +120 underdog at home. The game total sits at 5.5 combined goals.

Betting splits show 51% of straight bets on Carolina to win, 62% of wagers on Montreal to cover the +1.5 puck line, and 79% on the total’s over.

By all means, this should be another close affair like we saw in Game 2. The Canadiens have a really good goalie between the pipes and plenty of offensive talent, and when the first line of Nick Suzuki/Cole Caufield/Juraj Slafkovsky is on, they’re truly formidable. Lane Hutson remains one of the best defensemen in the game as well, and there’s standout talent in the depth. The disparity in xGF and overall high-danger chances over the first two games is rather slim, and it’s unlikely the Habs manage to put just 12 pucks on the net again. There’s certainly a reason they’re listed at -225 to cover the +1.5 puck line.

Carolina is an excellent team in terms of talent and has a great coach in Rod Brind’Amour. The Canes hadn’t even lost a game in these Stanley Cup Playoffs until Game 1 of this series, going unbeaten through the first two rounds (strength-of-schedule naysayers be damned). However, they went 0-3 against the Habs in the regular season by final scores of 7-5, 5-2 and 3-1. Over five outings in total, the Canadiens are 4-1 against this opponent with a 23-13 goal margin. Frankly, I like Montreal as an upset victor on tonight’s odds in front of possibly the best home crowd in hockey at the Bell Centre.

Best bet: MTL Canadiens ML (+120)