Maple Leafs vs Bruins Game Preview & Predictions
Rivals Clash in Huge Atlantic Division Showdown
Two of the teams fighting for positioning in the wild Atlantic Division. The Boston Bruins jumped into second place behind Florida for just a bit but now Tampa is in second place followed by Toronto. The teams have the same record and there’s not much to separate them in the NHL betting predictions. For more on how to bet, check out the info for more on the Maple Leafs vs. Bruins predictions.
Date: Tuesday, 7 p.m. ETÂ
Location: TD Garden, Boston, MA
Campbell Closer to ReturningÂ
The script seems to be the same every spring for the Toronto Maple Leafs. One of the most passionate fan bases in professional sports has an exciting group of forwards to cheer for on an annual basis, but the inability to keep the puck out of their own nets comes back to haunt them come playoff time. Toronto seemed to have fixed that problem as former Dallas first-round pick Jack Campbell’s second full season in Toronto saw him emerge into an elite goalie. A rib injury has sidelined Campbell since March 8. Toronto has gone 4-3-1 without Campbell in the lineup.
Veteran Petr Mrazek has struggled but Erik Kallgren has been a pleasant surprise in the net. Campbell was able to take part in on-ice workouts. He will be with the team in Boston but it is not known when he will make his next start for a Toronto team fighting for home-ice advantage with Boston and two-time defending champion Tampa Bay in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Toronto is also without injured defensemen Jake Muzzin and Rasmus Sandin. Muzzin hasn’t played since Feb. 21 while Sandin last played on March 19.
Bruins Soaring in East
No Eastern Conference team has been piling up the points with more frequency since the start of February than the Boston Bruins. A tough start had the Bruins fighting it out with Detroit just to stay in playoff position early in the season but those struggles are ancient history. Head coach Bruce Cassidy’s decision to move David Pastrnak off the dynamic first line has given the Bruins scoring depth it hasn’t had for a while. That has been especially noticeable recently.
The Bruins are 9-1-1 since March 3. Boston’s line with the most even-strength points since that time is the third unit of Trent Frederic-Charlie Coyle-Craig Smith, which has 13 goals and 17 assists in 11 games. They are followed closely by Pastrnak playing with Erik Haula and Taylor Hall. The Bruins’ defense, always a strong point, has been carrying the team at times and is why Boston is favored in this game according to the NHL point spreads
Since the start of February, only the Calgary Flames have a better points percentage than the Bruins (16-5-2). Boston is second in goals-against average during that time and rookie Jeremy Swayman is second in the NHL with save percentage among goalies playing at least 10 games. His 1.84 goals-against average is tops in the league.
Maple Leafs vs Bruins Betting GuideÂ
Boston has won four regular-season games at home against Toronto with the Bruins outscoring the Maple Leafs 19-7. Boston has covered in each of those contests Bruins vs. Maple Leafs betting predictions. The Bruins will look to get its top line going now that captain Patrice Bergeron is back for his second straight game after missing four games with an arm injury. They will try to slow down Toronto’s dynamic duo of Mitchell Marner and Auston Matthews. Marner has four goals and eight assists during a six-game point-scoring streak while Matthews needs two goals to become the ninth American-born player with 50 goals in a season.
