The Toronto Maple Leafs (45-21-10) welcome the Columbus Blue Jackets (24-44-8) at Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday. Columbus is coming off a 4-3 overtime win over the Senators on Sunday, breaking a run of four defeats in a row. The Blue Jackets committed only two penalties in the game, holding Ottawa without a power play goal.
Four players found the net for the Blue Jackets. Kirill Marchenko scored and provided an assist to share the scoring lead with Johnny Gaudreau, who had two assists.
Jon Gillies allowed three goals on 27 shots against (.888%) in the win. Toronto fell 5-2 to the Red Wings on Sunday. Calle Jarnkrok and John Tavares each scored once for the Maple Leafs. Matt Murray saved only five of seven shots (.714%) after starting in the loss.
HEAD TO HEAD
The teams have split their two meetings this season, the most recent of which was a 4-3 victory for the Blue Jackets in February. Boone Jenner, Marchenko, and Kent Johnson each had two points (1G 1A) to lead Columbus. William Nylander (1G 1A) and Mitchell Marner (0G 2A) each had two points to lead Toronto. Elvis Merzlikins got the win despite saving only 26 of 29 shots (.896%).
FACING OFF
Columbus is averaging 2.66 goals per game for the season, 30th in the NHL, and they are taking on a Maple Leafs team that is allowing 2.75 goals a game (7th).
Meanwhile, Toronto has found the net 3.38 times a game on average, ninth in the league, and the Blue Jackets are allowing opponents to score 3.97 goals per game (31st).
The Maple Leafs’ 25.22% power play percentage is the fifth-best in the league, while the Blue Jackets rank 25th with a conversion rate of 18.54%. When it comes to penalty killing, Toronto has the league’s 13th-ranked PK% at 80.97%, while Columbus is 22nd at 75.78%.
TOP PERFORMERS:
With 71 points this season, Gaudreau is the top skater for the Blue Jackets. He has 19 goals and 52 assists in 74 games. In the net, Joonas Korpisalo (16-13-4) is Columbus’ top goaltender by goals against average. He has a 2.84 GAA and a .916% save percentage.
Merzlikins (7-18-2) leads the Blue Jackets in games played in goal. He has a GAA of 4.23 and a save percentage of .876%. Marner leads the Maple Leafs in scoring with 95 points (10th in the league).
He has 28 goals and 67 assists (5th). Ilya Samsonov (25-10-4) has the best goals against average for Toronto at 2.41. He has a save percentage of .915%.
HOME AND AWAY
Columbus is looking to snap a three-game road losing streak this season. Toronto is 25-8-6 at home this season.
SportsTips’ NHL Pick:
Toronto Maple Leafs -2.5 (-105)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
