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The Buffalo Sabres will need to win on Saturday, May 16, in order to keep their season alive and force Game 7 against the Montreal Canadiens. The Habs took a 3-2 lead after taking down the Sabres 6-3 in Buffalo. The Canadiens can now secure a series win in front of their home crowd and advance to the Eastern Conference Final, where the Carolina Hurricanes await the winner of this second-round series. Carolina is a perfect 8-0 this postseason. If the Sabres can win on the road on Saturday, then Game 7 will take place in Buffalo on Monday. 

The SportsLine Projection Model, which simulates every NHL game 10,000 times, has locked in its NHL picks and best bets for Saturday's Sabres at Canadiens Game 6 clash. The model entered the second round of the 2026 NHL playoffs with a +668 return on top-rated money-line NHL picks. Anyone following its NHL betting advice at sportsbooks and on betting apps could have seen strong returns.

With this pivotal Game 6 matchup headlining the sports world on Saturday, there are a ton of NHL betting opportunities like spread betting, Over/Under bets, money line betting and even player prop bets. Bettors can also combine multiple picks and make a same-game parlay bet for Saturday's Game 6 matchup.

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NHL Playoffs picks for Saturday, May 16

  • Sabres money line
  • Under 6.5

Sabres money line vs. Canadiens

One interesting part of this series has been the success of the road teams. The Canadiens went 2-1 in Buffalo while the Sabres went 1-1 in Montreal. The Sabres will need to match the Canadiens' 2-1 road mark in order to keep their Stanley Cup hopes alive after getting blown out at home on Thursday. The good news for Buffalo fans is the SportsLine model thinks the Sabres will do just that, as they win in the majority of simulations at plus money. 

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Sabres-Canadiens Under 6.5

The Sabres and Canadiens have played five games this round, and three have gone Under this line of 6.5 total goals, including the last game played in Montreal, which was a 3-2 Buffalo win. Additionally, four of the Sabres' six games against Boston in the first round finished Under 6.5, while six of Montreal's seven first-round games against Tampa Bay went Under 6.5. The SportsLine model has the Under hitting in nearly 60% of simulations. 

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