BEN BURNS

Today’s FREE Pick
GAME: Toronto Maple Leafs @ Montreal Canadiens Dec 1, 2009 7:30PM
SPORT: National Hockey League Picks
PICK: Montreal Canadiens
Offered at: -140 5Dimes
REASON FOR PICK: The Canadiens, could really use a victory, as they're coming off back to back defeats. Those losses came against a pair of talented offensive teams, Washington and Pittsburgh. Both rank in the top four in the league in terms of goals scored, per game. The Pens average 3.2 gpg. while the Caps average a whopping 3.5. Tonight, they take a step down in class to face a Toronto team that averages only 2.7 gpg and which got blanked last night.

Including last night's loss, the Leafs are now a dismal 0-6 (-6.4) in division play. On the other hand, the Habs are a solid 4-1 (+3.5) in their divisional games. That includes a 2-0 mark against Toronto.

Some teams are good at bouncing back from a bad loss. Others respond well when playing the second of back to back games. Unfortunately, for Toronto fans, the Leafs don't fall into either of those categories. They're 1-7 this season when coming off a loss by two goals or more and they're also 1-3 when playing the second of back to back games. Looking back further and we find them at a money-burning 9-21 their last 30 when playing the second of back to back games. Given the situation, the price seems reasonable. Consider Montreal