Back the Canadiens to win as road underdogs against the Red Wings on Monday night

Not only are the Detroit Red Wings still alive in the Eastern Conference playoff race, but they’re arguably in the driver’s seat for the final Wild Card berth as we head into the last week of the regular season.

The Washington Capitals have the tiebreaker over Detroit, but the two clubs are tied with 87 points and Detroit’s final two games are, on paper, more manageable than Washington’s. The Caps have a back-to-back against the Boston Bruins and Philadelphia Flyers, while the Wings have a home-and-home with the Montreal Canadiens.

Detroit is a -200 home favorite against the Habs on Monday night.

There have been a number of occasions over the last month where it looked like the Red Wings were dead in the water, but they would respond to every heart-breaking loss with a season-saving win. Detroit’s 5-4 overtime victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs came two days after everyone wrote them off due to a loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The win over Toronto wasn’t without drama, Detroit blew a 4-1 lead and would have been officially eliminated with a regulation loss, but it did underscore how this team has held its nerve with its back against the wall.

The downside to that performance is that it showed the flaws of this roster. Detroit has plenty of offensive upside, but the Red Wings still have a lot of room for improvement on defense and the goaltending is unpredictable.

Those weaknesses are what makes Detroit a tough team to back at this kind of price.

The Habs may not have anything to play for, but this is a young, skilled team that has given plenty of superior teams issues all season long. I don’t think this matchup is as straightforward as these odds imply.

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