Face-off: 1930 ET, 08/03/2022
Arena: Scotiabank Arena
Toronto got back on track with an important win at Columbus last night and can build on that by seeing off Seattle at Scotiabank Arena.
The Maple Leafs are involved in a fierce battle for a top-three finish in the Atlantic Division and need to capitalise on fixtures like this.
We’re happy to take 1.91 for a home win by more than one clear goal to kick off our Toronto Maple Leafs vs Seattle Kraken predictions.
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Toronto Maple Leafs Odds
Toronto had suffered a worrying little blip with losses to Buffalo and Vancouver but showed their character by edging out the Blue Jackets.
The Maple Leafs raced into a 3-0 lead at Nationwide Arena, with Auston Matthews netting his league-leading 40th goal of the season.
Columbus recovered to draw level in the third period but Toronto found another gear to get the job done, with Mitchell Marner and Michael Bunting each having a goal and an assist.
Matthews said: “We let them back in the game, but I thought our bench and our team as a whole just stayed poised and confident.”
The 24-year-old centre has 72 points overall, Marner is on 60 and Bunting 45, with the last-named stating: “I think our line’s meshed pretty well.
“We’ve built some good chemistry and I’ve had a little bit of success offensively, so I’m just trying to keep rolling with them.”
Looking at the NHL odds for this game, 2.05 for Toronto to win the first period is a percentage pick.
The Maple Leafs are 70-48 up in that section over the season, while Seattle are 39-63 down.
Seattle Kraken Odds
Seattle are 1-8-1 over their past 10 games after starting out on a five-match road trip with weekend losses at Washington and Carolina.
The Kraken went down 5-2 when visiting the Capitals on Saturday but put in a brave effort when only losing 3-2 to the Hurricanes the following day.
Calle Jarnkrok had a goal and an assist as Seattle led twice at PNC Arena but they eventually fell to 7-19-2 away from home.
Defending on power plays is proving a problem and coach Dave Hakstol said: “We don’t like the way it’s gone in four of the last five.
“We’ve got to push that in the other direction. We’ve just got to make sure we get our heads clear and stay on it, stay confident and go get the next kill.”
Toronto’s high-powered offence was too strong when these teams met at Climate Pledge Arena a few weeks ago, though, and it may be the same again here.
Let’s add 4.4 for the hosts to prevail by exactly three goals to our Toronto Maple Leafs vs Seattle Kraken predictions, along with 12.5 for a 5-2 scoreline.
Additional stats
Last result:
Columbus 4-5 TORONTO
Carolina 3-2 SEATTLE
Season head-to-head: Seattle 2-6 Toronto
