The Toronto Maple Leafs (11-5-5) head to face the Minnesota Wild (9-8-2) at Xcel Energy Center on Friday. Toronto is coming off a 2-1 win over the Devils on Wednesday, their third win in a row away from home. John Tavares and Pontus Holmberg both scored once for the Maple Leafs.
Matt Murray saved an impressive 34 of 35 shots (.971%) in the win. Minnesota beat the Jets 6-1 on Wednesday. Marcus Foligno was the leading goal scorer for the Wild, netting twice. Matt Boldy had a goal and two assists to lead the team in scoring. Filip Gustavsson was impressive in the win, making 28 saves (.965%).
HEAD TO HEAD
The teams split their two meetings last season, the last of which was a 3-1 victory for the Maple Leafs in February. Auston Matthews (2G 0A) and Mitchell Marner (0G 2A) each had two points to lead Toronto. Frederick Gaudreau scored Minnesota’s only goal. Petr Mrazek got the win, saving 29 of 30 shots (.966%).
FACING OFF
Toronto is averaging 2.90 goals per game for the season, 21st in the NHL, and they are taking on a Wild team that is allowing 2.84 goals a game (12th). Meanwhile, Minnesota has found the net 2.84 times a game on average, 23rd in the league, and the Maple Leafs are allowing opponents to score 2.62 goals per game (6th).
Power play opportunities are likely to be plentiful for the Maple Leafs, as the Wild have been penalized 5.16 times a game, fourth-most in the NHL, for an average of 14.05 minutes (first-highest). The visitors are averaging 4.00 penalties (20th) and 8.81 penalty minutes a game (21st).
The Maple Leafs’ 26.47% power play percentage ranks sixth in the league, while the Wild are 13th with a conversion rate of 22.22%. When it comes to penalty killing, Minnesota has the league’s 10th-ranked PK% at 80.95%, while Toronto is 14th at 80.00%.
TOP PERFORMERS:
Marner and Tavares have been the top skaters for the Maple Leafs this season with 24 and 23 points. Tavares is among the league leaders with his 12 goals (8th), while Marner is among the league leaders with his 20 assists (4th).
In the net, Ilya Samsonov (6-2-0) is Toronto’s top goaltender by goals against average. He has a 2.23 GAA, fifth-best in the league, and a .921% save percentage.
Erik Kallgren (2-2-4) leads the Maple Leafs in games played in goal. He has a GAA of 2.87 and a save percentage of .891%. Kirill Kaprizov leads the Wild in scoring with 22 points. He has 11 goals and 11 assists in 19 games.
Marc-Andre Fleury (6-4-1) has the best goals against average for Minnesota at 2.80. He has a save percentage of .906%.
HOME AND AWAY
Toronto is 4-3-2 away from Scotiabank Arena this season. Minnesota is 4-5-1 at home this season.
SportsTips’ NHL Pick:
Minnesota Wild (-105)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
