Maple Leafs vs. Flames Pick
Will the Toronto Maple Leafs pull off the small upset tonight when they play at the Calgary Flames? The puck drops at 9PM ET.
According to oddsmakers at Bovada.lv, the Flames are a -115 favorite on the money line. The Maple Leafs are a -105 underdog, while the over-under is 6 goals.
Toronto comes in with a 15-9-1 record after a 4-2 home loss to the Capitals on Saturday. Calgary is 13-9-1 after a 3-2 victory at the Avalanche Saturday. The two meetings were split last year with each team winning at home, Calgary winning 3-0 on its home ice while Toronto won 4-0 at home. The total went under both games.
The Maple Leafs were led by Jake Gardiner and Nikita Zaitsev as each scored a goal in the loss to Washington. Curtis McElhinney made 17 saves on 20 shots in the losing effort. Toronto trailed 3-0 through two periods before a late rally attempt fell short.
Mikael Backlund had a goal and an assist for the Flames in the win at Colorado. Michael Ferland and Dougie Hamilton each scored a goal. David Rittich stopped 24 of 26 shots sent his way. Goals by Ferland and Backlund in the final minute of the second period gave Calgary a 3-1 lead and it hung on from there.
The home team is 20-6 in the last 26 meetings. The over is 5-1 in the last six meetings in Calgary.
The home team typically dominates this meeting, but we like the Maple Leafs to bounce back from a loss to Washington with a victory here. Look for Auston Matthews to lead the way by getting into the scoring column once or twice.
NHL DAILY PREDICTION: TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS -105