The Florida Panthers will make the trip to “Hogtown” for an Eastern Conference bout as they take on the Toronto Maple Leafs this Tuesday evening. Join us for our NHL odds series where our Panthers-Maple Leafs prediction and pick will be revealed.
Winners in three of their previous four matchups, the Panthers finally find themselves sitting north of the .500 mark with a 21-20-4 record. In the last six periods of hockey played, Florida has scored eight goals and are hopeful their newly found offensive prowess can carry over to a premier matchup versus the Maple Leafs.
As for Toronto, the Maple Leafs have endured the type of season that the Panthers wish they could be having as they enter Tuesday night's play with a 26-11-7 record. Overall, Toronto has dropped two in a row for the second time in the last couple weeks.
Here are the Panthers-Maple Leafs NHL odds, courtesy of FanDuel
NHL Odds: Panthers-Maple Leafs Odds
Florida Panthers: +1.5 (-168)
Toronto Maple Leafs: -1.5 (+136)
Over: 6.5 (-118)
Under: 6.5 (-105)
How To Watch Panthers vs. Maple Leafs
TV: ESPN+
Stream: ESPN+
Time: 7:00 ET/4:00 PT
*Watch NHL games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Panthers Could Cover The Spread
Alas, the Panthers may be finally finding their identity out on the ice at the halfway mark of the regular season. Not to mention, there is also plenty of time for Florida to make a run for another postseason berth.
First things first, the Panthers must find a way to have another road showing that shows off what Florida strives on. At first glance, the Panthers are a type of squad that can put up a scoring frenzy with the best of them but struggle in keeping pucks from crossing into their own net. As it stands, Florida averages roughly around 3.27 goals per game but surrenders 3.38 scores per game on the other side of the ice. For obvious reasons, few teams would be able to find success when they give up more goals than they score. If Florida is going to cover the spread, they will need to play extremely aggressively and do their best to keep the puck in the Maple Leafs zone a majority of the night.
In addition, it has been goaltender Sergei Bobrovksy that has been largely responsible for why the Panthers have won five of their last seven games overall. On the road in Buffalo, it was Bobrovsky that accumulated 28 saves en route to the triumph. Without a doubt, Florida needs Bobrovsky to be on his A game against a Maple Leafs squad that remains as one of the top-scoring offenses that this league has to offer. On paper, Bobrovsky's numbers aren't all that flashy, but he is more than capable of picking up the slack when his team needs it the most.
Why The Maple Leafs Could Cover The Spread
At first glance, it appears that the Maple Leafs are in fact the better team than Florida, but the Panthers have been playing exceptionally better as of late which should only make life more difficult for Toronto at home.
In order to improve upon their below-average 18-26 record ATS this season, the Maple Leafs will have to make it a priority to stay as healthy as possible with a gnarly flu virus recently making its way into the Toronto locker room. Since it's that time of the season, the Maple Leafs may be without names like forward Pontus Holmberg and Rasmus Sandin who both were unable to participate in practice on Monday. Above all else, Toronto's depth could eventually be tested in this one if some of their top playmakers continue to feel under the weather.
Outside of the fact that overcoming illness may be the best path to a covering of the spread, it will end up being vital for Toronto to get their dynamic duo of Mitchell Marner and Auston Matthews going from the get-go. With the most points on the roster thus far through 44 games played, Mitchell and Matthews have combined for approximately 100 points on the season and act as one of the more lethal scoring pairs in the entire league.
Last and certainly not least, the Maple Leafs need to figure out how to reverse the trend of playing poorly when it comes to their inability to stay out of the penalty box. In their latest two losses combined, Toronto has logged a whopping 31 penalty minutes which has resulted in numerous amount of back-breaking goals scored by the opposition. If Toronto can end up finding a way to play a cleaner brand of hockey, then covering the spread in this one should not prove to be overly difficult.
Final Panthers-Maple Leafs Prediction & Pick
With both sides residing in the ultra-competitive Eastern Conference, there isn't a whole lot of love between these two squads. However, with Florida's horrendous 15-30 record against the spread so far this season, the Panthers will find it difficult to win a third-straight game in a tough road environment.
Final Panthers-Maple Leafs Prediction & Pick: Maple Leafs -1.5 (+136)
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