The Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres meet for the second time in the span of a week on Thursday, January 22.
Both of these Atlantic Division teams find themselves firmly in playoff spots, and the Sabres are looking to end an egregious 14-season playoff drought.
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My Sabres vs. Canadiens predictions and NHL picks suggest another high-scoring thriller between these two offense-centric teams, with Lane Hutson continuing to cement himself as one of the league’s best defensemen.
Sabres vs Canadiens prediction
Sabres vs Canadiens best bet: Lane Hutson 1+ assists (-150)
Montreal Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson has taken his seemingly nonsensical omission from the American Olympic team personally.
The sophomore leads all defensemen in assists this season (43) and is only two points behind Cale Makar for the lead among blueliners. Over his last 21 games, Hutson has 26 helpers — four more than any other defenseman has points over that span.
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Bill Guerin’s least favorite defenseman has six apples in his last three games, including two against the Buffalo Sabres a week ago.
Sabres vs Canadiens same-game parlay
On a related note, Alexandre Carrier is another Habs defender who has been on fire lately. Not only does he have four goals in his last five games, but the Quebec City native leads the entire NHL with 26 blocked shots in his last eight games.
His 113 blocked shots are good for fifth in the league this season, and for good measure, the 29-year-old now has more points than Brendan Gallagher and Phillip Danault.
Montreal, despite being the league’s youngest team, trails only the Colorado Avalanche in scoring and has tallied 4+ goals in five of its last six against Buffalo.
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Sabres vs Canadiens SGP
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Alexandre Carrier Over 1.5 blocked shots
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Canadiens team total Over 3.5
Sabres vs Canadiens odds
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Moneyline: Sabres +105 | Canadiens -125
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Puck Line: Sabres +1.5 (-225) | Canadiens -1.5 (+185)
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Over/Under: Over 6.5 (-120) | Under 6.5 (+100)
Sabres vs Canadiens trend
Montreal has won five of the last six and seven of the last 10 games against Buffalo. Find more NHL betting trends for Sabres vs. Canadiens.
How to watch Sabres vs Canadiens
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Location |
Bell Centre, Montreal, QC |
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Date |
Thursday, January 22, 2026 |
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Puck drop |
7:00 p.m. ET |
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TV |
MSG Sportsnet, TSN2 |
Sabres vs Canadiens latest injuries
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
Not intended for use in MA.
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This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here
