Tampa Bay Lightning vs Toronto Maple Leafs Prediction, 12/9/2021 NHL Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Tampa Bay Lightning vs Toronto Maple Leafs

Date: Thursday, December 9, 2021

Location: Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, ON

TV: Sportsnet

Odds/Point Spread: Lightning (+110) Maple Leafs (-132)

Andrei Vasilevskiy and the Tampa Bay Lightning (16-5-4) go to Scotiabank Arena on Thursday where they'll take on the Toronto Maple Leafs (18-7-2). The Lightning open this contest at +110 while the Maple Leafs are coming in at -132. The O/U has been set at 5.5.

The Lightning were on the right side of the scoreboard with a 3-2 win over the Canadiens their last time on the ice. The offensive zone starts for them were rated at 52.0% and they had a PDO of 103.4 for this one. They amassed 21 face-off wins when at even strength and lost on 19 opportunities to win the face-off. Their Fenwick came in at 33 and the Fenwick against was 30, giving them a Fenwick percentage of 52.4%. The Corsi for the Lightning came in at 49 and the Corsi against when all was said and done was 37 which means they had a Corsi percentage of 57.0%. Tampa Bay amassed 13 penalty mins for this game. In addition, they had 3 power play chances but weren't able to score. The Lightning had a middle of the road offensive performance in this victory. In the matchup, they tallied a score on 3 of the 27 shots they put on goal.

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The Lightning have had 750 shots attempted against them and hold a save percentage of .913. While at even strength, the Lightning have conceded 53 goals while earning 68 of their own. Tampa Bay Lightning opponents have 74 power play opportunities (13th in the NHL) and have earned 12 goals in those chances. For the current season, they have recorded 36 points and their points percentage sits at .720. Tampa Bay has taken 740 shots and is the owner of a shooting percentage of 11.1%. When it comes to their goal scoring prowess, the Tampa Bay Lightning have notched 82 goals (8th in pro hockey) for the season and have allowed 65. Tampa Bay has tallied 73 power play chances and they have notched 14 goals during those advantages, garnering them a rate of 19.18%.

Patrolling the crease for the game will be Andrei Vasilevskiy. From the beginning of his pro career to now, Vasilevskiy has accumulated 178 quality starts and his quality starts rate is .571. He has a save percentage of .920 for his 18,843 mins between the pipes. Vasilevskiy has had 9,759 shots against him and has recorded 8,980 saves. Opponents have racked up 779 goals against Vasilevskiy in his pro hockey career and his goals against average is 2.48. He has compiled a record of 203-87-22 and he has started in 312 games. Vasilevskiy has taken the ice for 322 games during his NHL career.

When they took the ice last, Toronto faced the Blue Jackets in a game where the Maple Leafs got the victory by a final of 5-4. Toronto had a 44.8% Corsi rating. These Corsi statistics are telling of the type of game that Toronto played and it tells us that they played really well in this game. Their Fenwick rate was 49.4% by way of having a Fenwick of 44 and the Blue Jackets having racked up a 45 Fenwick. Their PDO was 97 and their oZS percentage was 42.1%. The Maple Leafs recorded 5 goals of the 40 shots on goal they attempted. They had 3 power play chances in this outing and netted 2 goals out of those tries.

The Maple Leafs have earned 64 goals at even strength and 21 goals (2nd in hockey) while on the power play. Toronto has put up 936 shots (1st in pro hockey) and has accumulated a shooting percentage of 9.08%, while allowing the opposition 844 shots. For the season, the Toronto Maple Leafs have tallied 85 goals, 38 points, in addition to a points percentage of .704. They have recorded 77 power play chances and they have a power play percentage of 27.27%. They have a penalty kill percentage of 81.58% on their opponents 76 tries on the power play, and their save percentage is 92.3%. They have allowed 65 goals to be scored by of a combination of 51 goals at even strength and 14 goals while they were shorthanded.

Across the rink you are expected to see Jack Campbell in net. He has accounted for 2,772 stops out of the 3,007 shots taken against him, which gives him a save % of .922. Campbell has amassed a career mark of 54-34-10 and has played in 107 contests. He has made the start in 98 contests and has been on the ice for 6,000 mins. Campbell's quality start rate sits at 59.2% and he has made 58 quality starts in his hockey career. Opponents are averaging 2.35 goals/game and he has conceded 235 goals in total.

Who will win tonight's hockey game against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take Tampa Bay (+110)

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