{"id":476229,"date":"2025-10-18T08:00:37","date_gmt":"2025-10-18T12:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/?p=476229"},"modified":"2025-10-17T23:46:39","modified_gmt":"2025-10-18T03:46:39","slug":"nhl-predictions-oct-18-new-york-rangers-vs-montreal-canadiens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2025\/10\/18\/nhl-predictions-oct-18-new-york-rangers-vs-montreal-canadiens\/","title":{"rendered":"NHL Predictions: Oct. 18 New York Rangers vs Montreal Canadiens"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome back to another NHL Predictions. Each day, our writers here at\u00a0Last Word on Hockey<\/em>\u00a0look at the games and give in-depth analysis. Our team breaks down the key matchups, storylines, and stats, then makes predictions based on how they might play out. For this edition, we will look at the\u00a0New York Rangers<\/a>\u00a0taking on the\u00a0Montreal Canadiens<\/a>.\u00a0Don\u2019t forget to check out more\u00a0NHL Predictions<\/a>,\u00a0as our writers continue this series throughout the 2025-26 season.<\/p>\n

NHL Predictions<\/h2>\n

Edmonton Oilers vs New Jersey Devils<\/h3>\n

2024-25 Season Series: Oilers 0-2 Devils<\/h4>\n

How to Watch<\/a>:<\/p>\n

U.S TV:\u00a0<\/strong>MSGSN; ESPN+<\/p>\n

Canada TV:<\/strong> Sportsnet<\/p>\n

Time:<\/strong> 3:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT)<\/p>\n

We open up NHL predictions with the Edmonton Oilers<\/a> looking to get back on track against the New Jersey Devils<\/a>. Stuart Skinner<\/a> is expected to draw the start for the Oilers. However, always check social media before locking in a daily fantasy starter. Edmonton is coming off a loss time out to the New York Islanders. Connor McDavid<\/a> has yet to score, but he leads the team in points with five assists.<\/p>\n

Jake Allen<\/a> will likely get the start with Jacob Markstrom<\/a> still sidelined due to injury. The Devils beat the defending champion Florida Panthers<\/a> last time on the ice. Timo Meier<\/a> and Jesper Bratt<\/a> are both tied for first in New Jersey with five points apiece. However, Meier is first in goals with three.<\/p>\n

Note the early start time for setting fantasy hockey lineups and other activities. Edmonton has plenty of offence, but New Jersey gets the victory.<\/p>\n

Prediction: Devils win 3-2.<\/p>\n

New York Rangers vs Montreal Canadiens<\/h3>\n

2024-25 Season Series: Rangers 2-1 Canadiens<\/h4>\n

How to Watch:<\/p>\n

U.S TV:\u00a0<\/strong>MSG; ESPN+<\/p>\n

Canada TV:<\/strong> SN East; CityTV; TVA Sports<\/p>\n

Time:<\/strong> 7 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT)<\/p>\n

Our featured game of NHL predictions has the Rangers trying to stem the tide against the Canadiens. Igor Shesterkin<\/a>, who is the expected starter, has been excellent this season, but hasn’t gotten much support from his offence. New York has been shut out three times already and was held to one goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs<\/a> in the last game. Adam Fox<\/a> is first on the team in goals (3) and points (4).<\/p>\n

Sam Montembeault<\/a> is the likely starter for Montreal, which has won four straight after dropping the season-opener. The Habs score 3.6 goals per game and yield 2.8 per contest. Both Cole Caufield<\/a> and Nick Suzuki<\/a> are off to great starts<\/a> with seven points each. However, Caufield already has five goals at the start of the campaign.<\/p>\n

Shesterkin can keep the Rangers in the game. However, the Canadiens have more than enough firepower to get the win.<\/p>\n

Prediction: Canadiens win 3-1.<\/em><\/p>\n

Seattle Kraken vs Toronto Maple Leafs<\/h3>\n

2024-25 Season Series: Kraken 0-2 Maple Leafs<\/h4>\n

How to Watch:<\/p>\n

U.S TV:\u00a0<\/strong>NHL Network; KHN; KONG; NHL Network<\/p>\n

Canada TV:<\/strong> CBC; Sportsnet<\/p>\n

Time:<\/strong> 7 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT)<\/p>\n

Our last game of NHL predictions has the Maple Leafs hosting the Seattle Kraken<\/a> in the second-most important sports event between teams from Seattle and Toronto. Joey Daccord<\/a> is the prospective starter for the Kraken, who have lost two straight. Jared McCann<\/a> is Seattle’s top goal-scorer with three, but he’s tied with Vince Dunn<\/a> and Brandon Montour<\/a> for first in points (4).<\/p>\n

Anthony Stolarz<\/a> is the projected starter for the Maple Leafs, who have taken the last two games. Toronto averages 3.8 goals scored a game, while it allows 3.2 per game. William Nylander<\/a> is off to a blistering pace with nine points so far this campaign. Auston Matthews<\/a> leads the way in goals with four.<\/p>\n

Daccord is a very capable goalie for Seattle. However, Toronto seems to be in an offensive groove.<\/p>\n

Prediction: Maple Leafs win 4-2.<\/em><\/p>\n

Prop Bets of the Night<\/h3>\n

We round out NHL predictions with some prop bets of the night. Let’s go back to our featured matchup for some of our preferred props. The over\/under for the Rangers and Canadiens is 5.5, and we like the under in this one.<\/p>\n

On the individual prop front, take Caufield to bag a power-play goal for the Canadiens. For the Rangers, go with Artemi Panarin<\/a> to get the over on 0.5 assists.<\/p>\n

Main photo by: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Welcome back to another NHL Predictions. Each day, our writers here at\u00a0Last Word on Hockey\u00a0look at the games and give in-depth analysis. Our team breaks down the key matchups, storylines, and stats, then makes predictions based on how they might play out. For this edition, we will look at the\u00a0New York Rangers\u00a0taking on the\u00a0Montreal Canadiens.\u00a0Don\u2019t […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2352,"featured_media":435993,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4524,4547,7,14,34,4548],"tags":[6017,6016,6079,6122,7170,6062],"class_list":["post-476229","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nhl-predictions","category-hockey","category-canadiens","category-rangers","category-news","category-nhl","tag-edmonton-oilers-predictions","tag-montreal-canadiens-predictions","tag-new-jersey-devils-predictions","tag-new-york-rangers-predictions","tag-seattle-kraken-predictions","tag-toronto-maple-leafs-predictions"],"modified_by":"Dan Mount, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/476229","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2352"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=476229"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/476229\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":476233,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/476229\/revisions\/476233"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/435993"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=476229"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=476229"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=476229"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}