Morning Coffee: Habs harness March Madness vibes for playoff push

Play hard, play smart, play together.

The North Carolina Tar Heels are moving on in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament after an impressive 95-68 over San Diego State on Tuesday night.

The 27-point victory is the second largest by any team in a First-Four game since the addition of the round in 2011.

No sweat for anybody who bet Tar Heels -4.5 at FanDuel.

Next up, North Carolina is a 1.5-point favourite for its game against Mississippi in the first round.

Meanwhile, Alabama State secured its first-ever NCAA tournament win but failed to cover as a 3.5-point favourite in a 70-68 win over St. Francis.

Their big prize is a date with Auburn in the first round where they will be a massive 31.5-point underdog.

The First Four continues tonight on TSN with two more games on both the men’s and women’s side.

Then the real March Madness begins on Thursday.

Speaking of March Madness, the NHL playoff races are heating up with several teams still in contention for the final playoff spots in both conferences.

No team has been hotter than the Montreal Canadiens of late.

After picking up another crucial win over the rival Ottawa Senators last night, the Canadiens are back in a playoff spot with just 15 games to go.

Their recent hot streak has the Montreal faithful buzzing with the hope that a little March Madness could help propel them into the postseason.

This is the Morning Coffee for Wednesday March 19^th, 2025.

Habs Harness March Madness Vibes For Playoff Push

Every year, basketball fans cheer on a Cinderella team as the darlings of the NCAA tournament.

While everybody at the office is busy trying to predict this year’s bracket buster, Habs fans are hoping the March Madness vibes will translate to the NHL in the form of the Canadiens being this year’s Cinderella team.

Remember, it was only a few months ago that Montreal was among the top five choices to finish with the worst record in the NHL at +800 odds.

Fast-forward to early February, the Habs were +1060 to make the playoffs – an 8.6 per cent implied probability!

After limping into the 4 Nations Face-Off break on the heels of three straight losses, the Montreal faithful were furious about their team’s position in the standings.

The Canadiens didn’t appear ready to contend for a playoff spot.

They also weren’t bad enough to be in the mix for a top pick.

Whatever happened during the break, something clicked.

Since the 4 Nations Face-Off, no team has been hotter than Montreal.

The Habs beat the Senators 6-3 last night to improve to 8-1-2 since the 4 Nations Face-Off.

That run includes a pair of wins over Ottawa to improve to 3-0 in the head-to-head series this season.

Montreal has also picked up wins over the top two choices to win the Eastern Conference in the Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes over that stretch.

When the news broke that the Calgary Flames beat the New York Rangers in regulation last night at the Bell Centre, it whipped the crowd into a frenzy.

The Canadiens are one point up on the Rangers for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with two games in hand.

Montreal is down to +215 to make the playoffs at FanDuel this morning – a 31.7 per cent implied probability.

While no team has been hotter than the Habs, there’s still a long way to go with a tough schedule ahead and only three points separating five teams in the race for the final Eastern Conference Wild Card spot.

The Canadiens still have four games against the Panthers and Hurricanes, including a home-and-home versus Florida at the end of the month.

They also have a handful of games remaining against teams they are battling for that final Wild Card spot in the New York Islanders, Boston Bruins, Detroit Red Wings, and the Ottawa Senators.

With the Islanders, Colorado Avalanche, St. Louis Blues, and Philadelphia Flyers on deck over the next eight days, the Habs could really improve their postseason chances by extending their hot streak to close out the month.

If the Canadiens falter now, it will be tough to recover with games at Carolina, at Florida, then home to the Panthers after that.

The 2024-25 NHL season has been a rollercoaster ride for Montreal to date.

However, their recent hot streak has Habs fans imagining their team could be this year’s Cinderella story in the NHL.

Nobody should count out the Canadiens just yet.

A FanDuel Best Bet For Wednesday Night

As impressive as last night’s win was for Montreal, it would have been nice if Cole Caufield could had finished with one more shot on goal.

Turning the page this morning, I’m looking to bounce back with a FanDuel Best Bet winner for tonight.

I’ll lock in a Same Game Parlay with Mitch Marner to record 1+ point and the alt over 5.5 goals in tonight’s game between the Colorado Avalanche and Toronto Maple Leafs.

These teams met earlier this month in Colorado and combined for 11 goals.

Marner scored twice and despite the team’s recent struggles he’s got eight points in eight games this month.

Hopefully, a 5-2 win over the Flames gives Marner and company some confidence as they get another chance to prove their merit against a Stanley Cup contender tonight.

Give me Marner to record a point and the alt over 5.5 at +104 odds as a best bet.

Next up, I’ll lock in a traditional two-team parlay with the Cleveland Cavaliers to beat the Sacramento Kings and the Indiana Pacers to beat the Dallas Mavericks at -110 odds.

After dropping back-to-back games following a franchise record win streak, I’m banking on the Cavs to bounce back tonight while the Pacers take advantage of a Mavericks’ team that has been awful since the Luka Doncic trade.

Hopefully, we can go 2-0 and get back on track tonight.

Have a great day, everyone!