Toronto Maple Leafs vs Carolina Hurricanes prediction 12-30-23 NHL Picks

The Carolina Hurricanes will play the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario. Carolina has won two games in a row, while Toronto has lost four of their last five games. Let’s take a look at the betting matchup and the Hurricanes vs Maple Leafs prediction.

Hurricanes Preview

The Carolina Hurricanes are 19-13-4 this year after they defeated Montreal by a score of 5-3 in their last game. Carolina led 2-0 and 3-2, but blew both leads, before pulling away in the third period. The Hurricanes out shot Montreal by a total of 31-21 and went 1-3 on the power play in the game. Carolina defeated Nashville by a score of 5-2 in the game prior to Montreal, but lost to the Islanders and Penguins before that. The Hurricanes are scoring 3.33 goals per game and they are allowing 3.14 goals against per game, while going 25.8% on the power play and 82.2% on the penalty kill. Sebastian Aho has led Carolina with 14 goals, 25 assists, and 99 shots on goal. The projected starting goalie for Carolina is Pyotr Kochetkov, who is 8-7-3 this year with a 2.65 goals against average and a .898 save percentage. 

Maple Leafs Preview

The Toronto Maple Leafs are 17-9-7 this season after they lost to Columbus in overtime by a score of 6-5 in their last game. Toronto led 3-1 and 5-4, but allowed Columbus to tie the game in the third period and get the win in overtime. The Maple Leafs out shot Columbus by a total of 33-21 and went 2-4 on the power play in the game. Toronto lost to Ottawa by a score of 4-2 in the game before Columbus, but did defeat Columbus by a score of 4-1 prior to that. The Maple Leafs are scoring 3.53 goals per game and they are allowing 3.38 goals against per game, while going 25.5% on the power play and 79.4% on the penalty kill. William Nylander has led Toronto with 17 goals, 31 assists, and 140 shots on goal. The projected starting goalie for Toronto is Martin Jones, who is 4-2-0 this season with a. 2.85 goals against average and a .914 save percentage. 

Toronto Maple Leafs Team Facts

The Maple Leafs have lost four of their last five games.
The Maple Leafs have failed to cover the puck line in 22 of their last 27 games against Eastern Conference opponents.
The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 2′ market has hit in each of the Maple Leafs’ last 11 games against Eastern Conference opponents.
The Maple Leafs have won the second period in four of their last five games against the Hurricanes.

Carolina Hurricanes Team Facts

The Hurricanes have lost seven of their last eight games at Scotiabank Arena.
The Hurricanes have covered the puck line in eight of their last 10 night games at Scotiabank Arena.
The Hurricanes have won the third period in seven of their last nine night games at Scotiabank Arena.
The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 1′ market has hit in six of the Hurricanes’ last seven games at Scotiabank Arena against opponents on a losing streak.

Toronto Maple Leafs Player Prop Facts

Auston Matthews has scored at least one goal in eight of his last nine appearances.
John Tavares has recorded at least one point in each of his last seven home appearances against the Hurricanes.
William Nylander has recorded at least one assist in each of the Maple Leafs’ last nine games against Eastern Conference opponents.
Auston Matthews ranks 1st in the league for multi-goal games (10) this season.

Carolina Hurricanes Player Prop Facts

Sebastian Aho has scored at least one goal in eight of his last nine Saturday night appearances against Eastern Conference opponents.
Sebastian Aho has recorded at least one point in each of his last nine Saturday night appearances against Eastern Conference opponents.
Andrei Svechnikov has recorded an assist in four of his last five appearances in night games at Scotiabank Arena.
Jaccob Slavin has the most Shorthanded Goals for the Hurricanes this season (2).

Matchup/League Facts

The Toronto Maple Leafs rank 27th in the league for goals against per game this season (3.45).
The Toronto Maple Leafs rank 3rd in the league for Period 2 goals scored per game this season (1.27).
The Carolina Hurricanes rank 32nd in the league in save percentage this season (.878).
The Carolina Hurricanes rank 32nd in the league in short handed goals allowed this season (7).

Hurricanes vs Maple Leafs Betting Prediction

Toronto comes into this matchup struggling and they have lost four of their last five games. The Maple Leafs are coming off of a loss against the Blue Jackets on Friday night and will be on a back to back here. Carolina has won two games in a row, but they are only 9-10-1 on the road. Carolina has scored five goals in each of their last two games and I like them in this spot. The Maple Leafs have been very inconsistent at times this season and I do not like how they are playing. Take the Hurricanes here.