The Boston Bruins at Air Canada Centre in Game 3 of the NHL postseason’s first round. The puck drops at 7 p.m. ET on Monday, April 16, and you’ll be able to catch the game live on NBC Sports Network.
Boston Bruins vs. Toronto Maple Leafs Odds
Boston (-105) is currently the underdog to Toronto (-115) and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at 6 goals (-120 for the over, +100 for the under).
Boston is 52-32 straight up (SU) and has netted 6.1 units for moneyline bettors this season. 42 of its games have gone under the total, while 37 have gone over and just five have pushed. The Bruins are 22-19 SU on the road in 2017-18.
After accounting for the fourth-best power-play unit in the regular season (scoring on 24.6 percent of all chances), the Bruins have been able to score on 50.0 percent of their extra-man advantages in the early stages of these playoffs.
Boston’s offensive skaters attempted 33.0 shots per game in the regular season, leading to 3.4 goals per contest (ranked sixth overall in the NHL). In the playoffs, the club’s managing an average of 34.0 shots on goal (and down to 6.0 goals per game).
With a .918 save percentage and 25.8 saves per game, Tuukka Rask (36-20-5) has been the top option in goal for Boston this season. If it decides to rest him, however, head coach Bruce Cassidy could turn to Anton Khudobin (16-15-7 record, .913 save percentage, 2.56 goals against average).
The visiting Bruins have relied on Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak heavily this year. Marchand (91 points) has tallied 35 goals and 56 assists, and has recorded multiple points in 28 different games. Pastrnak has 39 goals and 50 assists to his name (and has notched at least one point in 56 games).
Toronto is 49-35 straight up (SU) and has netted 4.5 units for moneyline bettors this season. Through 84 regular season contests, 43 of its games have gone over the total, while 35 have gone under and just six have pushed. This season, the team is 29-12 SU at home.
Toronto comes into the matchup with the second-strongest power-play unit in the NHL, as the team has scored on 24.6 percent of its extra-man advantages this season. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 12th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 80.1 percent of all opponent power plays.
Toronto players have been sent to the penalty box only 3.3 times per game in total this season, and 4.0 per game over their past five outings. The team has been forced to kill penalties just 8.2 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Frederik Andersen (30.4 saves per game) has been the primary choice in goal for Toronto. Andersen has 40 wins, 28 losses, and five OT losses to his credit and has registered a mediocre 2.88 goals against average and a .916 save percentage this season.
Mitchell Marner (23 goals, 48 assists) will lead the attack for the Maple Leafs.
Boston Bruins vs. Toronto Maple Leafs Betting Predictions
Free Pick: SU Winner – Bruins, O/U – Over
Betting Trends
- Boston has attempted 33.0 shots per contest overall this season (the second-most in the NHL), and 34.1 in its last 10 outings.
- The extra-man advantage may prove to be even more key than usual in the outcome of this matchup. The Bruins are 16-19 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 29-21 when they serve fewer than 10 penalty minutes, in total. The Maple Leafs are 18-12 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 36-31 in games where total penalty minutes are in the single digits.
- Toronto is ranked 6th in the league this season with 8.5 takeaways per game. That figure has trended upward lately, as it has averaged 10.0 takeaways over its last 10 games and 10.2 takeaways over its last five.
- Boston skaters have managed 6.8 takeaways per game over its last five road games, a drop-off from its season average of 8.3 takeaways per game (ranked seventh in the NHL).
