Buffalo Sabres vs Montreal Canadiens Prediction, Preview and Odds - 05/10/2026

Game Time: 7:00 pm ET, Sunday, May 10, 2026

Venue:  Bell Centre, Montréal, QC

Where to Watch:  ESPN

DraftKings:  Moneyline:  Sabres +102, Canadiens -122; Over/Under:  5.5 goals

Bet365:  Moneyline:  Sabres +105, Canadiens -125; Over/Under:  6 goals

BetMGM:  Moneyline:  Sabres +105, Canadiens -125; Over/Under:  6 goals

Buffalo Sabres:  50-23-9 (1st place, Atlantic Division)

Montreal Canadiens:  48-24-10 (3rd place, Atlantic Division)

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Buffalo Sabres:  6-2-2 last 10

Montreal Canadiens:  5-3-2 last 10

The Sabres are entering the playoffs with 109 points, a 50-23-9 record overall, and they were 24-13-4 in their road games this season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game off a loss against the Montreal Canadiens in their last game, losing that one at home 5-1. Zach Benson scored 1 goal for them in that one. Conor Timmins and Josh Doan each led the team in assists with 1 while Alex Tuch led the team in shots on net in that game with 6. Alex Lyon was the starting goalie in that game and he allowed 4 goals on 27 shots with 23 saves and a .852 sv percentage. Their offense has scored 288 goals this season averaging 3.5 goals per game and their defense has allowed their opponents to score 241 goals against them allowing 2.9 goals per game.

The Canadiens are entering the playoffs with 106 points, a 48-24-10 record overall, and they were 24-15-2 in their home games this season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game off a win against the Buffalo Sabres in their last game, winning that one on the road 5-1. Alex Newhook led the team in goals scored with 2 while Alexandre Carrier, Mike Matheson, and Nick Suzuki each scored 1 goal for them in that one. Jake Evans, Josh Anderson, Kaiden Guhle, Lane Hutson, Noah Dobson, and Phillip Danault each led the team in assists with 1 while Noah Dobson led the team in shots on net in that game with 5. Jakub Dobeš was the starting goalie in that game and he allowed 1 goal on 29 shots with 28 saves and a .966 save percentage. Their offense has scored 283 goals this season averaging 3.5 goals per game and their defense has allowed their opponents to score 256 goals against them allowing 3.1 goals per game.

The current betting odds have the Canadiens listed as a slight favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Sabres have looked great in their games this season with their 50-23-9 record overall which had them right at the top of their division in the East with one of the best records in the entire NHL. They have been a good road team too with their 24-13-4 road record this year. Meanwhile, the Canadiens have looked good in their games this season with their 48-24-10 record overall which had them in the top half of their division in the East. They have looked good on home ice too with their 24-15-2 home record this season. This is game 3 of a 7-game series between the 1st seeded Sabres and the 3rd seeded Canadiens from the Atlantic Division for the 2nd round of the NHL playoffs. This series is all evened up 1-1 after the Canadiens won game 2 by a score of 5-1. The Canadiens looked terrible in game 1 of this series and they ended up losing that game, getting outplayed by the Sabres from start to finish. That game was also right after a tough 7 game series against the Lightning and the Sabres had the rest advantage. The Canadiens bounced back in game 2 though, taking the lead right from the start and never really looking back in that one as they looked like the better team from start to finish. Now they have some momentum going back home and they are going to bring their best effort since game 1 was the first time in these playoffs that they were trailing in a series. The Sabres have been up and down in the playoffs so far, looking great in their wins against the Bruins last round but also having a lot of trouble in the 2 games they lost. They have been up and down to start this series too and the Canadiens were not a team that they crushed during the regular season. The Canadiens have the edge in this one with the momentum in this series on their side now along with the home advantage. The best way to place a bet here is on the Canadiens to win this game. 

Sabres Canadiens Prediction:  Our NHL Pick for Sunday, May 10, 2026 (7:00 pm ET start time) is Canadiens 3 Sabres 2.

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Buffalo Sabres: 14-6 (+10.5 units) on the moneyline as an underdog of +100 to +150. 24-13 (+12.8 units) on the moneyline revenging a loss versus opponent as a favorite. 36-21 (+11.8 units) on the moneyline against terrible defensive teams - allowing 3+ goals/game. 10-5 OVER revenging a loss vs opponent as a home favorite.

Montreal Canadiens: 23-21 (-6.3 units) on the moneyline as a favorite. 10-13 (-6.8 units) on the moneyline at home when the money line is -100 to -150. 3-6 (-4.2 units) on the moneyline after a blowout win by 4 goals or more. 26-17 OVER after playing a road game.

Buffalo Sabres:  N. Ostlund (C) Out - Lower Body. S. Carrick (C) Day To Day - Arm. J. Kulich (C) Out For Season - Ear. J. Danforth (RW) Out For Season - Kneecap.

Montreal Canadiens:  P. Laine (RW) Out - Abdomen.

“I think three or four of the goals were just the result of bad puck play. You can't beat yourself. We beat ourselves, and we know we have to be better. We said after Game 1, it's my job to make sure we get our minds in the right place. And I think we could have made a big difference on four of their goals at least.” - Lindy Ruff after his team’s loss against the Canadiens in the 2nd game of this series on Friday. 

“We've learned a lot from last year, and I think we've grown. I'm proud of the response. I'm not surprised. We're going to start over (in) Game 3, but every game has its own story, every series has its own story, and you can't dictate the story. You’ve just got to keep writing. Rewrite if you don't like it." - Martin St Louis after his team’s win against the Sabres in game 2 of this series on Friday.

LW Peyton Krebs

C Tage Thompson

RW Alex Tuch

LD Rasmus Dahlin

RD Mattias Samuelsson

G Alex Lyon

LW Cole Caufield

C Nick Suzuki

RW Juraj Slafkovský

LD Mike Matheson

RD Alexandre Carrier

G Jakub Dobes

Points: Tage Thompson (81)

Goals: Tage Thompson (40)

Assists: Rasmus Dahlin (55)

GAA: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (2.52)

Points: Nick Suzuki (101)

Goals: Cole Caufield (51)

Assists: Nick Suzuki (72)

GAA: Jacob Fowler (2.43)

Coaches:

Buffalo Sabres: Lindy Ruff (2nd season)

Montreal Canadiens: Martin St. Louis (5th season)