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All 32 teams take the ice on Tuesday starting with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Washington Capitals. It is time to continue our NHL odds series with a Maple Leafs-Capitals prediction, pick, and how-to-watch.
The Maple Leafs come into the game sitting at 3-2 on the season. Thye opened the season with a shootout victory over the Canadiens, before beating the Minnesota Wild 7-4. In the next two games, they would fall as the offense struggled. They lost to the Blackhawks and Panthers in back-to-back games by scoring one goal in each game. Last time, it was a quick start, followed by struggles. William Nylander opened with a goal less than five minutes into the game. Then, Tampa Bay would score three straight in the first period. Still, Toronto would fight back, with two Matthew Knies goals in the third period, and then a John Tavares goal in overtime to take the win.
Meanwhile, the Capitals are 1-3 on the season. They opened the season by being shut out by the Penguins, before rebounding against the Flames. It was a shootout win against the Flames to get their only win of the season. After a 6-1 loss to the Senators, the Capitals would head to Montreal. They were down 1-0 in the first, and then 2-0 in the second period. Dylan Strome would score twice in the third period to tie it up, but Cole Caufield scored 47 seconds into overtime to give Montreal the win.
Here are the NHL Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
NHL Odds: Maple Leafs vs. Capitals Odds
Toronto Maple Leafs: -160
Washington Capitals: +132
Over: 6.5 (-118)
Under: 6.5 (-105)
How to Watch Maple Leafs vs. Capitals
Time: 6:00 PM ET/ 3:00 PM PT
TV: ESPN
Stream: FuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why The Maple Leafs Will Win
The Maple Leafs' top two lines have been great this year for the Maple Leafs. Auston Matthews leads the team in goals this year. He has scored six goals this season but has not scored since the first two games of the year when he had a hat trick in each game. Still, his shooting volume has been great, with 30 shots so far this year. He is joined by Mitchell Marner and Calle Jankrok on the top line this year. Marner has a goal with three assists this year. The goal and one of the assists come on the power play. Meanwhile, Calle Jankrok has a goal and an assist this year.
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On the second line, It is William Nylander and John Tavares. Nylander has scored four goals this year with five assists. He had a goal on the power play with two assists on the power play. Then John Tavares has two goals this year with seven assists on the season. Three of those assists have come on the power play.
The power play has been a huge part of the offense for the Maple Leafs. They have scored five times this year on the power play on 17 chances. They have also been great at getting shots on target this year. The Maple Leafs have shot 30 or more times in every game this year, with two games over 40 shots, and one over 50 shots. Meanwhile, they have been fair on the penalty kill. They have shut down 13 of 17 man-down situations.
Joseph Woll is going to be in goal for the Maple Leafs in this one. He has made one start so far this year, and in that game, he gave up three goals in the game on 30 shots. Still, he has made another appearance this year. He took over for Ilay Samsonov against Tampa Bay. After Samsonov gave up three goals in the first ten minutes, Woll took over, going 50 minutes and stopping all 29 shots he faced, getting the win.
Why The Capitals Will Win
The Capitals need to figure out how to score more. Dylan Strome leads the team in goals this year. He has two goals, both coming in the loss to Montreal. Meanwhile, Alex Ovechkin has yet to score this year and has taken just nine shots overall. He does have two assists this year though. The Capitals have scored just five goals this year. The other three goals are spread amongst three players. John Carlson has one of the goals this year, while he also has two assists. Matthew Phillips has one of the other goals, with two assists this year. Finally, Connor McMichael has a goal, but that is the only point he has this year.
There are a couple of issues with the offense this year. First, they need to get more shots on goal. The Capitals have gotten over 25 shots on goal just one time this year, which was the overtime loss to the Canadiens. Second, they need to do better on the power play. They have not converted on the power play this year, with 13 opportunities. Finally, they have to be better on the penalty kill. They have allowed five goals on the power play this year while having 19 penalty kill chances this year.
With Charlie Lindgren out, the Capitals are expected to send Darcy Keumper to protect the net in this one. He has started three games this year and has a 1-1-1 record on the season. This year has not gone to plan, with a 3.56 goals against average and a .887 save percentage. The Capitals have enough defense, that if he can be solid, they can stay in the game. In his win, he had a .950 save percentage. Further, he had a .793 save percentage. In the overtime loss, it was a .893 save percentage. If Keumper is closer to the two better games, the Capitals will be able to hang around and could come away with a win.
Final Maple Leafs-Capitals Prediction & Pick
This game will come down to two factors. First is the man advantage. The Capitals have to stay out of the box because the Maple Leafs have a deadly power play. That is not something they have done well this year though. They also need to find a way to score on the power play, which will most likely come from Alex Ovechkin scoring his first goal of the year. Second, it is goaltending. Kemper has had three completely different games this year. If he has a solid game, the Capitals can come away with a win. That will be decided early. Keumper is good with high-shot totals if he gets into a grove. That will not happen in this one. Toronto scores early and comes away with a win.
Final Maple Leafs-Capitals Prediction & Pick: Maple Leads ML (-160)
