The New Jersey Devils may only have three wins on the season, but two of them came back-to-back against the Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning—two of the Eastern Conference’s premiere teams. Unfortunately, other than that small span of excellent play, the Devils have not had much to hang their hats on over the first month of the season. New Jersey believes that they have enough talent to at least be in the running for a playoff sport toward the end of the year, but only 14 games into the season there are already rumbles about goalie Martin Brodeur waving his no-trade clause if he were dealt to a contender. Those rumors can’t be a good sign for a team that is already sitting near the bottom of the Metropolitan Division.

The Maple Leafs are flying high, having earned 20 points through 15 games of their schedule. The team already has two huge wins against the Anaheim Ducks and the Pittsburgh Penguins and is looking to establish themselves as legitimate title contenders in the Eastern Conference. Let’s take an in-depth look at Friday night’s matchup between the Devils and Maple Leafs with predictions and analysis.

Devils at Maple Leafs Betting Story Lines

The Maple Leafs are coming off of a road loss against the Vancouver Canucks and were shut out for the first time this season. The team managed only 21 shot attempts against Canucks’ goaltender Roberto Luongo, and was generally ineffective throughout the entire game. The Maple Leafs did manage to play aggressively and had 28 hits and seven takeaways in the matchup. Toronto has played solid on offense over their previous three games before Saturday’s loss and were able to score 12 goals in that span. However, the Maple Leafs have been on the road quite a bit lately, and they are in the middle of a stretch where they will play eight of 11 games away from the Prudential Center. That extended time on the road may be beginning to affect the team’s usually-solid offense.

New Jersey is on the second night of a road back-to-back and in the final game of a three-game road trip. The team has improved since starting the season with seven straight losses, but they are still struggling to score goals and have won only three games during their last seven matchups. The Devils rank 28th in goals scored per game with 1.9, 16th in goals allowed, 15th in power play percentage and 14th in penalty kills. New Jersey also only has one player with double-digit points through 14 games of the season. By contrast, the Maple Leafs already have six players with double-digit points and a seventh ready to hit that mark once he earns his next point.

Neither team has played particularly well against the puckline. The Devils are 6-8 against the puckline and have lost $100 bettors $653 for wagering on the team. The Maple Leafs have done quite a bit better, but they are still not providing much value to wager on. The team has earned $100 puckline bettors $31 through 15 games worth of action. Both squads provide much more value by betting them straight up on the moneyline,

Devils at Maple Leafs NHL Betting Odds and Key Trends

Toronto opened as a large -175 moneyline favorite against the +159 moneyline underdog Devils, according to BetOnline. The puckline was set at +165 for the Maple Leafs and -190 for New Jersey. The total for the matchup opened at five goals, with the “over” being favored at -118. The Devils are 1-10 during their last 11 games played on the second night of a back-to-back. The team is also 0-4 during their last four Friday games and is 2-4 in their last six matchups. Toronto has a 4-1 record over their last five home games as well as against teams with a below .400 record. Head-to-head, the road team is 5-2 during the last seven meetings, but the Devils are 0-4 during the last four matchups.

Free NHL Picks: Devils at Maple Leafs Betting Predictions

Toronto is a large moneyline favorite against New Jersey, but they also have all the value in this matchup. Usually there is always a legitimate reason to think about wagering on a +159 underdog in the NHL. The schedule is a long grind, and almost anything can happen on a nightly basis. With that being said, it is difficult to image the Devils pulling off the upset against a very good Maple Leafs team that is coming off of an embarrassing shutout loss. Expect Toronto to enter this game well-rested (they have not played since Saturday) and looking to correct a few mistakes from their last loss. Take the Maple Leafs on the moneyline.

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Read more articles by George Monroy