The Pepsi Center will play host to an enticing showdown as the Toronto Maple Leafs visit the Mile-High City to take on the Colorado Avalanche. This East-West matchup gets underway at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday, November 23, and it’ll air live on Altitude Sports & Entertainment.
Toronto Maple Leafs at Colorado Avalanche Odds
Colorado (-125) is tabbed as the favorite over Toronto (+105), and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at 7 goals. If you want to play the matchup’s total, you’ll be looking at odds of -110 for the over and -110 for the under.
The Avalanche are 13-9 straight-up (SU) and have netted 4.5 units for moneyline bettors this season. That winning percentage, ranked fifth in the NHL in this young season, is a welcome improvement over the 38-44 record from last year’s regular season campaign. Of the team’s 22 games this season, 11 have gone over the total, while nine have gone under and just two have pushed. The team’s 6-3 SU at home this season.
Colorado’s converted on 19.3 percent of its power play opportunities this season, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 25th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 75.6 percent of all penalties.
Colorado, as a collective unit, has been penalized 4.4 times per game overall this season, 4.6 per game over its last five outings total, and 4.2 per game over its last five at home. The team’s had to kill penalties for 10.6 minutes per game over its last five home outings.
Averaging 30.3 saves per game with a .916 save percentage, Philipp Grubauer (7-6-2) has been the principal option in goal for the Avalanche this season. If head coach Jared Bednar decides to rest him, however, the Avs could roll with Pavel Francouz (5-2-2 record, .915 save percentage, 2.82 goals against average).
Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar will each spearhead the attack for the Avalanche. MacKinnon (32 points) has tallied 13 goals and 19 assists and has recorded two or more points on nine separate occasions this year. Makar has seven goals and 18 assists to his credit and has recorded at least one point in 16 games.
Toronto has lost 7.3 units for bettors taking the moneyline thus far and is currently 10-14 straight up (SU). A total of 13 of its games have gone over the total, while 10 have gone under the total and just one has pushed. Toronto’s 4-7 SU as the road team this season.
Toronto has converted on 17.6 percent of its power play opportunities this year, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 26th overall and it’s successfully killed off 74.1 percent of all penalties.
Toronto’s players have been penalized 3.6 times per game this season, and 2.2 per game over their last five match ups. The team has had to kill penalties just 7.0 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Frederik Andersen (.915 save percentage and 2.66 goals against average) has been the primary option in goal for Toronto. Andersen is averaging 28.8 saves per game and has 10 wins, eight losses, and three overtime losses to his credit.
Leading the offensive firepower for the visiting Maple Leafs will be Auston Matthews, who has 15 goals and 13 assists on the year.
Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Colorado Avalanche Free Picks
NHL Pick: SU Winner – Avalanche, O/U – Under
Betting Trends
- For both of these clubs, the under has hit in three of their last five outings.
- Toronto’s attempted 33.1 shots per contest overall this season (ranked 11th in the NHL), and 36.4 in its last five road games.
- The Maple Leafs are 3-6 SU when they serve more penalty minutes than their opponent while the Avalanche are 3-3 SU in games where they spend more time in the box than the opposition.
- Colorado is ranked 10th overall with 8.3 takeaways per game. That figure has trended down, however, as it has averaged 6.1 takeaways over its last 10 games and 5.6 takeaways over its last five.
- Toronto is ranked 23rd overall with 6.8 takeaways per game. That figure has trended down lately, however, as the team has averaged 6.0 takeaways over its last 10 games and 5.0 takeaways over its last five.
