Mitch Marner and the desperate Buffalo Sabres will look to pick up a statement-making road upset over Auston matthews and the explosive Toronto Maple Leafs when the two teams meet at Scotiabank Arena on Monday night.
With the Sabres looking to improve their chances of reaching the playoffs and the Leafs looking for consecutive wins after snapping a season-high, three-game losing streak the last time out, let’s find out which team is offering the best value against their NHL odds in this affair.
Sabres vs Maple Leafs NHL Odds, Preview & Predictions
Today’s a busy day.
Start it off with #SharpenUp: https://t.co/mhLLmIsVLZ pic.twitter.com/87KJWCcdEj — Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) 25 de febrero de 2019
- When: Monday February 25, 2019, 7:00 PM ET
- Where: Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, Ontario
- TV: MSG-Buffalo
- Radio: Buffalo / Toronto
- Live Stream: NHL.tv
- NHL Odds: Toronto -240/Buffalo +195 / Total: 6
Why Bet on Buffalo?
Why should you consider betting on the Buffalo Sabres in this affair? The best (only?) reason is sheer and utter desperation. Buffalo snapped a four-game losing streak by spanking Washington 5-2 on Saturday as Jason Pominville and Sam Reinhart put the Sabres up 2-0 after the first period. Reinhart finished with a hat trick and Carter Hutton got the win to improve to 16-17-4 this season by stopping 31 of 33 shots to get the win.
“I just like the urgency and the desperation in our game right now,” said Buffalo coach Phil Housley.
Another good reason to back Buffalo is the fact that they nearly upset Toronto the last time they met before falling 4-3 on Dec. 4.
Team Statistics
Offense- Goals: 2.89
- Shots: 32.57
- PP/PK Percentage: 17.93
- Goals: 3.10
- Shots: 32.56
- PP/PK Percentage: 17.39
Why Bet on Toronto?
Why should you consider betting on the Toronto Maple Leafs in this matchup? Well, there are a ton of reasons. First, the Leafs are the better team, by far, at both ends of the ice, in ranking fourth in scoring (3.5 gpg) and eighth in goals allowed (2.8 gpg). Then, there’s the fact that the Leafs are playing at home and would like to improve on their modest 18-12-1 record, not to mention the fact that Buffalo has gone an uninspiring 11-15-2-2.
Then, there’s the fact that Toronto will be looking to string some wins together after picking up a 6-3 win over Montral the last time out to snap a three-game skid. The Leafs overcame a 3-0 first period deficit to beat the Canadiens.
Auston Matthews and Tyler Ennis each had a secnd period power play goal to make it 3-2 after two periods while Zach Hyman lit the lamp twice in the third and William Nylander and Andreas Johnsson both added goals in the win.
“I think that first period intermission we just wanted to come in and just take a deep breath, get our composure back and just go to work,” said Matthews, who has tallied 15 points in his last 13 games.
Team Statistics
Offense- Goals: 3.54
- Shots: 32.08
- PP/PK Percentage: 21.88
- Goals: 2.84
- Shots: 32.77
- PP/PK Percentage: 18.99
Sabres vs Maple Leafs NHL Betting Trends
- Buffalo is 18-4 ATS in the last 22 games on the road
- Buffalo is 1-5 SU in the last 6 games on the road
- The total went OVER in 6 of Buffalo’s last 7 games when playing Toronto
- Toronto is 4-10 ATS in the last 14 games at home
- Toronto is 5-1 SU in the last 6 games at home
- The total went OVER in 4 of Toronto’s last 6 games at home
Expert Analysis and Prediction for Sabres vs Maple Leafs
I won’t waste a lot of time beating around the bush on this pick, simply because Toronto is the ‘super-easy’ pick to win and cover the zPuck Line in the process. Despite their win the last time out and their sizable amount of desperation, Toronto is simply much better than Buffalo in every area in this affair.
The Sabres are 3-7 in their last 10 road games against a team with a winning home record and 1-4 in their last 5 games overall. Conversely, Toronto has gone 4-0 in their last 4 when their opponent scores 5 goals or more in their previous game, 20-6 in their last 26 games after scoring 5 goals or more in their previous game and a blistering 36-16 in their last 52 home games. Toronto wins and cashes in with room to spare!
NHL Betting Pick: Toronto 5 Buffalo 2
