Toronto Maple Leafs (54-25-12) vs. Florida Panthers (49-35-8)
May 10, 2023 7:00 pm EDT
The Line: Florida Panthers +105 / Toronto Maple Leafs -125; Over/Under: +6.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers meet Wednesday in game 4 of the NHL East Second Round Playoffs at the FLA Live Arena. Let’s preview this game and give out a pick and prediction.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are averaging 3.22 goals per game and are scoring on 25 percent of their power play opportunities. Auston Matthews leads Toronto with 5 goals, Mitchell Marner has 10 assists and William Nylander has 37 shots on goal. Defensively, the Toronto Maple Leafs are allowing 3.44 goals per game and are killing 76 percent of their opponent’s power plays. Joseph Woll has given up 4 goals on 26 shots faced, and Ilya Samsonov has allowed 26 goals on 255 shots.
The Florida Panthers are averaging 3.60 goals per game and are scoring on 25 percent of their power play opportunities. Brandon Montour leads Florida with 6 goals, Matthew Tkachuk has 10 assists and Sam Bennett has 30 shots on goal. Defensively, the Florida Panthers are allowing 3.30 goals per game and are killing 64.7 percent of their opponent’s power plays. Alex Lyon has given up 9 goals on 92 shots faced, and Sergei Bobrovsky has allowed 23 goals on 253 shots.
The Maple Leafs are 6-1 in their last 7 road games and 1-4 in their last 5 overall. The Panthers are 73-33 in their last 106 home games and 6-0 in their last 6 overall. The under is 5-0 in Maple Leafs last 5 overall. The under is 7-0 in Panthers last 7 Conference Semifinals games. The Maple Leafs are 3-9 in the last 12 meetings in Florida and 1-4 in the last 5 meetings. The road team is 5-1 in the last 6 meetings. The underdog is 6-0 in the last 6 meetings.
I’m not sure how we can leave plus money on the table with the Florida Panthers given what we’ve seen in this series and the fact they’ve been a buzz saw at home dating back to last season. The Panthers have won 68.8 percent of their last 106 home games. Also, Ilya Samsonov wasn’t practicing for the Maple Leafs on Tuesday, which means there’s a good chance Joseph Woll is in net, a young goalie with just 11 career starts and has struggled in limited playoff action. This just isn’t an ideal spot for the Maple Leafs, and the plus money with the Panthers is bizarre. Give me the home dog.
