Montreal Canadiens vs. New York Rangers Betting Odds, Analysis, NHL Preview

The Montreal Canadiens (31-20-8) will try to end their three-game losing streak and earn their first victory under new head coach Claude Julien when they visit the New York Rangers (38-19-1) on Tuesday as solid road underdogs at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.

Julien took over for Michel Therrien on Feb. 14 following a 2-6-1 slump, and Montreal proceeded to lose its first game with him on the bench to the Ottawa Senators 3-1 on Saturday as home favorites on the NHL betting lines.

The Canadiens got off to a red-hot 13-1-1 start to the season, and they have been fortunate to stay on top of the Atlantic Division amidst their recent struggles.

Ottawa sits just two points behind Montreal, and the Boston Bruins, who fired Julien on Feb. 7, are four back in a competitive divisional race, with seven of the eight teams over the .500 mark heading into Tuesday's NHL action.

The eighth-place team is the Detroit Red Wings, who have made the playoffs in 25 straight seasons.

The Rangers are trending in the other direction, winners of seven of eight following a 2-1 victory against the Metropolitan Division-leading Washington Capitals on Sunday.

New York got the game-winning goal from Mats Zuccarello at the 8:37 mark of the third period, and goaltender Henrik Lundqvist made 31 saves to help his team pull within eight points of Washington for the Metropolitan lead and within three of second place.

While the Rangers are in better form, they have struggled versus the Canadiens lately.

Montreal won the lone meeting between the teams on Jan. 14 at home 5-4 behind a furious rally in the third period. Alexei Emelin, Max Pacioretty and Paul Byron all scored within a 62-second stretch in the third to turn a 3-2 deficit into a 5-3 lead until Derek Stepan tallied the final goal for New York at the 14:53 mark.

The Rangers fell for the fourth time in five meetings with the Habs, according to the OddsShark NHL Database, with the total going over for the third time in a row.