The Buffalo Sabres (7-10-0) will be looking to snap their losing streak when they travel to face the Toronto Maple Leafs (9-5-4) at Scotiabank Arena on Saturday. Buffalo is coming off a 4-1 loss against the Senators on Wednesday, their seventh defeat in a row.
The Sabres committed seven penalties in the game, conceding one power play goal. Tage Thompson scored the lone goal for the Sabres. Eric Comrie had 22 saves after starting in the loss. Toronto fell 3-2 (OT) to the Devils on Thursday. Auston Matthews and William Nylander both scored once for the Maple Leafs.
Matthews added an assist to lead the team in scoring. Matt Murray saved only 30 of 33 shots against (.909%) in the loss.
HEAD TO HEAD
The Sabres won three of the four games between the teams last season, including a 5-2 victory in their final meeting in April, their third straight win against Toronto. Four players had two points for Buffalo. Morgan Rielly led Toronto with two points (0G 2A). Craig Anderson got the win, saving 24 of 26 shots (.923%).
FACING OFF
Buffalo is averaging 3.53 goals per game for the season, seventh in the NHL, and they are taking on a Maple Leafs team that is allowing 2.72 goals a game (8th). Meanwhile, Toronto has found the net 2.89 times a game on average, 23rd in the league, and the Sabres are allowing opponents to score 3.59 goals per game (26th).
The Maple Leafs’ 25.42% power play percentage ranks seventh in the league, while the Sabres are 11th with a conversion rate of 22.39%. While strong on the power play, Buffalo has been less successful at penalty killing, as the away team owns the league’s fourth-lowest PK% at 72.22%. Toronto’s 80.00% ranks 11th in the NHL.
TOP PERFORMERS:
With 22 points this season, ninth-most in the NHL, Thompson is the top skater for the Sabres. He is among the league leaders with 12 goals (3rd) and has added 10 assists. In the net, Anderson (3-3-0) is Buffalo’s top goaltender by goals against average.
He has a 2.82 GAA and a .910% save percentage. Comrie (4-7-0) leads the Sabres in games played in goal. He has a GAA of 3.62 and a save percentage of .887%.Mitchell Marner and Matthews lead the Maple Leafs in scoring with 20 and 19 points, respectively.
Marner has four goals and 16 assists (8th), while Matthews has eight goals and 11 assists. Ilya Samsonov (6-2-0) has the best goals against average for Toronto at 2.23. He has a save percentage of .921%.
HOME AND AWAY
Buffalo has dropped four in a row on the road this season. Toronto is 6-2-2 at home this season.
SportsTips’ NHL Pick:
Toronto Maple Leafs -1.5 (-115)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
