Arizona Coyotes vs. Toronto Maple Leafs Prediction, NHL Odds
The Leafs were decisively defeated 6-2 in Toronto on Tuesday at the hands of the defending Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights, while Arizona fell 4-2 in Montreal.
Toronto opened as a -250 favourite to win on the NHL odds, with the total set at 6.5.
Coyotes vs. Maple Leafs NHL Betting Odds
This is the second and final meeting between the teams this season. The Maple Leafs won 6-3 in Arizona last week, with Toronto sniper Auston Matthews scoring his 50th and 51st goals of the season in his home state. It was the first time the Leafs won in Arizona since November 2019 and it broke a four-game win for the Coyotes in the overall head-to-head series.
Arizona is just 8-16-5 on the road this season, but the bigger story is their brutal losing streak that has hit 13 games. Thursday might be just what they need, however, as they’ve won in 10 of their last 12 trips to Toronto. High scoring contests have been a recent trend, with the ‘Yotes hitting the Over in four of their last five games.
Toronto has been hot in out of conference games, winning 10 of their last 11 dates against Western Conference opponents. But, be warned, this is not a team that has been kind to bettors this season as they are just 21-37 against the spread overall, including 9-19 ATS at home. One thing you can expect is plenty of goals as the Over has hit in six of the Leafs’ last seven games.
Arizona Coyotes
The Coyotes’ ugly win streak hit 13 games in Montreal on Tuesday despite Arizona outshooting the Habs 38-21. Alex Kerfoot and Nick Bjugstad scored for the Coyotes, while Connor Ingram stopped 17 of 20 shots faced in net. Clayton Keller, who leads the team in points (52) and goals (22), missed the game after exiting Sunday’s loss in Winnipeg with an upper-body injury. It’s unknown if he’ll be ready to play on Thursday. Discipline has been a major issue for Arizona. The Coyotes have accumulated the fourth-most penalty minutes in the NHL this season, but their penalty kill ranks 21st with a 78.0 per cent success rate.
Arizona ranks in the bottom third of the NHL in goals scored per game (2.86) and goals allowed per game (3.31) and that doesn’t look likely to improve on Thursday with Keller questionable and both Ingram and Karel Vejmelka struggling in net. Ingram hasn’t won a game in over a month, going 0-5-2 with a 4.42 goals-against average and .871 save percentage across his last seven starts. Vejmelka is winless in 2024. He has lost his last eight starts, posting a 6.49 GAA and .846 SV in that stretch.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto’s loss on Tuesday snapped a seven-game win streak, the longest Leafs win streak since 2003. Tyler Bertuzzi and Ryan Reaves scored for Toronto, while Ilya Samsonov was tagged for five goals on 31 shots faced. Matthews, who leads the NHL with 52 goals, was held off the scoresheet for just the second time in his last 17 games. Bertuzzi has been hot lately, posting five points (3G, 2A) over his last three games.
The Leafs are expected to roll with Samsonov, Martin Jones and Joseph Woll in net in the immediate future as Woll works his way back from an ankle injury that has kept him out of the lineup since early December. After a bad start to the year, Samsonov has rebounded with six wins and one loss in the month of February. He could be in line to get the start again on Thursday as Jones couldn’t backup against Vegas due to an undisclosed injury and Woll isn’t ready to start yet.
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