A couple of squads ready to get at it, the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Columbus Blue Jackets open the 2019-20 season at Nationwide Arena in an Eastern Conference showdown. The opening face-off is at 7 p.m. ET on Friday, October 4, and you’ll be able to watch the game live on The Sports Network.
Toronto Maple Leafs at Columbus Blue Jackets Odds
The Maple Leafs (-145) are tabbed as the favorites over the Blue Jackets (+125) and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at 7 goals (-105 for the over, -115 for the under).
Both of these teams posted winning records during the 2018-19 campaign. The Toronto Maple Leafs went 46-36 straight up (SU) last season, while the Columbus Blue Jackets finished 47-35.
The visiting Maple Leafs managed to score 3.40 goals per game on offense (33.1 shot attempts per game), while the defense gave up 3.08 goals per contest. Opponents attempted 33.2 shots per game on the Maple Leafs last year.
Fueled by 31.6 offensive shot attempts per matchup, the Blue Jackets were able to notch 3.13 goals/game. They yielded 29.9 shots and 2.79 goals per game on defense.
Toronto hit paydirt on 20.9 percent of its power play opportunities during the 2018-19 season. It managed to kill off 78.5 percent of all opposition power plays.
Columbus converted on 16.7 percent of its man-advantages and killed off 84.9 percent of the power plays its defense faced.
Toronto Maple Leafs at Columbus Blue Jackets Free Picks
NHL Prediction: SU Winner – Blue Jackets, O/U – Over
Betting Trends
- Columbus was 2-1 in games decided by shootout last year while Toronto went 0-2 in shootouts.
- Toronto skaters converted 8.7 takeaways per game while yielding 12.2 giveaways per matchup in 2018-19.
- Columbus’ skaters recorded 7.7 takeaways per game and allowed 7.3 giveaways per game.
