Toronto Maple Leafs at Buffalo Sabres NHL Picks & Predictions 3/5/2018

Monday, March 5, 2018

KeyBank Center

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Toronto Maple Leafs travel to KeyBank Center to play the Buffalo Sabres on Monday, March 5, 2018. The opening line for this game has the Maple Leafs at -173 and the Sabres at +156.

Toronto has a record of 39-21-7 this season and on the road they have a record of 17-13-5-2. They are 3rd in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 220 goals and given up 190 goals for a point differential of +30. For the season they have an ATS record of 39-28-0 and an over/under record of 32-31-0. Buffalo is 20-34-11 including 9-18-4-1 at home this season. They are 8th in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 154 goals and surrendered 211 for a goal differential of -57. Their record against the spread is 20-45-0 while their over/under record is 28-33-0.

Valuable Toronto Maple Leafs Betting Trends

The Toronto Maple Leafs are 39-28-0 straight up this year

The Toronto Maple Leafs are 32-31-0 against the over/under this season

Important Buffalo Sabres Betting Trends

The Buffalo Sabres are 20-45-0 straight up this year

The Buffalo Sabres are 28-33-0 against the over/under this season

Key Toronto Maple Leafs Injuries

11/06/17 LW Joffrey Lupul Hernia IR (10/03)
02/25/18 C Auston Matthews Upper Body IR (02/22)

Key Buffalo Sabres Injuries

03/04/18 D Marco Scandella Upper Body injured last game, is "?" Monday vs Toronto
03/02/18 LW Evan Rodrigues Upper Body is "?" Monday vs Toronto
02/11/18 C Jack Eichel Ankle IR (02/09)
02/08/18 D Jake McCabe Shoulder IR (02/06)
01/27/18 D Zach Bogosian Hip IR (01/09)

Player Spotlight

Mitch Marner has accumulated 53 total points this season for the Maple Leafs. He has 17 goals this year with 157 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 11%. He has a total of 36 assists on the season and averages 16 minutes played per game. William Nylander averages 16.7 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 10% by scoring 14 goals on 144 shots. He has 35 assists, giving him a total of 49 points on the season. Frederik Andersen has 32 wins and 17 losses this season in net for the Maple Leafs. He has 1,871 shots against him and he's given up 149 goals. He's made 1,722 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Player Spotlight

Ryan O'Reilly has scored 47 total points this year for the Sabres. He has 18 goals this season with 175 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 10%. He has a total of 29 assists on the season and averages 20.7 minutes played per game. Kyle Okposo averages 17.3 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 8% by scoring 11 goals on 133 shots. He has 26 assists, giving him a total of 37 points on the season. Robin Lehner has 13 wins and 24 losses this year in goal for the Sabres. He has 1,397 shots against him and he's surrendered 127 goals. He's made 1,270 saves for a save percentage of 91%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Maple Leafs have 85 total points this season, which ranks them 5th in the NHL. They are 3rd in the league in goals scored with 220 while they've given up 190 goals, ranking them 15th overall. They have had 184 power play opportunities and have scored 37 goals on those chances for a percentage of 20%. That is 16th in the NHL. The Maple Leafs have allowed 191 power play opportunities and have given up 33 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 83%, putting them 9th in the league when short-handed. They average 32 shots per game and as a team shoot 10.33% for the season. They allow 34 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 92%. That puts them 4th in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Sabres are 30th in the NHL with a total of 51 points this year. They have 34 power play goals on 198 opportunities for a percentage of 17%. That ranks them 25th in the league as a power play unit. They've allowed 192 power play opportunities and have given up 39 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 80%. That is 19th in the NHL. As a team, the Sabres are 31st in the league with 154 goals scored while they've given up 211 goals, which is 5th overall. They average 31 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 7.74%. As a team they give up 32 shots per game and have a save percentage of 90%. That is 27th in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Toronto is 18th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 49.7%, as they've attempted 4,053 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 4,098 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is 48.5% as they have 2,998 attempts while they have given up 3,183 shots on the defensive end. That ranks them 21st in the league. The Maple Leafs start possessions in the offensive zone 48.7% of the time, which is 25th in the league, while their defensive zone percentage is at 51.3% for the season. That is 10th overall in the NHL. They have 2,195 face-off wins compared to 2,052 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 51.7%. That ranks them 7th in the league. On defense Toronto has 1,361 hits and they have blocked 915 shots from the opposition, putting them 22nd overall.

Advanced Statistics

The Sabres are 7th in the league in starting possessions in the offensive zone, doing so 52.3% of the time. Their defensive zone percentage is at 47.7% for the season, which is 20th in the NHL. They have 1,999 face-off wins compared to 1,909 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 51.2%. That is 9th in the league. On defense Buffalo has 1,427 hits and they have blocked 893 shots from the opposition, which is 27th in the league. Buffalo is 23rd in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 48.2% as they've attempted 3,518 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 3,779 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage of 48.3% ranks 24th as they have 2,701 attempts while they have given up 2,886 shots on the defensive end.

Who will win tonight's Maple Leafs/Sabres NHL game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take Buffalo +156

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