The Toronto Maple Leafs are off to a hot start with 2 wins over their biggest rivals, the Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators. The game with the Habs in Montreal was tight, but the Leafs dismantled the Senators in their most recent game and will look to continue their hot start tonight against the Penguins. Giguere has been a main reason for the Leafs early success and he will once again be between the pipes this evening as the Leafs try to defend two of the most prolific scorers in recent years, Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.
The Penguins, on the other hand, have not gotten off to the best start with one win in their first three games. Not only that, but Crosby and Malkin have each been held to just one point in these games, which is not enough if the Penguins are going to have success this season. The Pens are not the deepest team in the league, so they need their star players to step up and contribute in order to win.
Toronto Maple Leafs +145 (Bookmaker.com)
Pittsburgh Penguins -160 (Sportsbook.com)
The Maple Leafs are the road underdogs in this game. They did perform better at home than on the road in their two games this season, but that is far too small a sample size to make any conclusions. The Penguins have lost both of their home games this season and I expect them to either continue to play below average hockey or for Crosby and Malkin to light it up and the Penguins to win by a landslide.
My Prediction: Toronto Maple Leafs +145 @ Bookmaker.com
The Maple Leafs have looked very strong lately and are playing a Penguins team which I feel is extremely overrated. The +145 odds I get at Bookmaker.com are more than enough to justify wagering on the underdog in this case. I will likely be fading the Penguins a lot during the start of the season because they are a team that the public overvalues, which in turn forces the bookmakers to also overvalue them. The Maple Leafs are another team that are often overvalued, just due to their vast fan following, but the way they have been playing should continue, which will give the Penguins all that they can handle.
I personally think that each of these teams are bubble teams for the playoffs this year, so this is a big game for each team, even though it is still very early in the season. Visit Bookmaker.com now to place your Toronto Maple Leafs wager!
Written by: Niko de Jonge
Tagged with: NHL • Odds • pittsburgh penguins • predictions • season • Toronto Maple Leafs