Toronto Maple Leafs at Pittsburgh Penguins NHL Picks & Predictions 12/9/2017

Saturday, December 9, 2017

PPG Paints Arena

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Toronto Maple Leafs travel to PPG Paints Arena to play the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday, December 9, 2017. The opening line for this game has the Maple Leafs at +110 and the Penguins at -121.

Toronto has a record of 18-10-1 this season and on the road they have a record of 9-5-1. They are 2nd in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 101 goals and given up 85 goals for a point differential of +16. For the season they have an ATS record of 18-11-0 and an over/under record of 14-12-0. Pittsburgh has a record of 16-11-3 including 10-3-1 at home this season. They are 5th in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 90 goals and surrendered 98 for a goal differential of -8. Their record against the spread is 16-14-0 while their over/under record is 17-12-0.

Valuable Toronto Maple Leafs Betting Trends

The Toronto Maple Leafs are 18-11-0 straight up this year

The Toronto Maple Leafs are 14-12-0 against the over/under this season

Important Pittsburgh Penguins Betting Trends

The Pittsburgh Penguins are 16-14-0 straight up this year

The Pittsburgh Penguins are 17-12-0 against the over/under this season

Key Toronto Maple Leafs Injuries

11/06/17 LW Joffrey Lupul Abdominal IR (10/03)

Key Pittsburgh Penguins Injuries

12/07/17 D Justin Schultz Lower Body IR (12/06)
11/28/17 GO Matt Murray Lower Body IR (11/27)

Player Spotlight

Frederik Andersen has 16 wins and 8 losses this season in net for the Maple Leafs. He has 860 shots against him and he's given up 67 goals. He's made 793 saves for a save percentage of 92%. Nazem Kadri has accumulated 23 total points this season for the Maple Leafs. He has 13 goals this year with 71 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 18%. He has a total of 10 assists on the season and averages 16.3 minutes played per game. Auston Matthews averages 18.6 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 16% by scoring 13 goals on 80 shots. He has 13 assists, giving him a total of 26 points on the season.

Player Spotlight

Sidney Crosby has scored 30 total points this year for the Penguins. He has 12 goals this season with 95 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 13%. He has a total of 18 assists on the season and averages 20.6 minutes played per game. Tristan Jarry has 5 wins and 2 losses this year in goal for the Penguins. He has 229 shots against him and he's surrendered 18 goals. He's made 211 saves for a save percentage of 92%. Phil Kessel averages 18.4 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 12% by scoring 14 goals on 114 shots. He has 21 assists, giving him a total of 35 points on the season.

Useful Team Statistics

The Maple Leafs have allowed 91 power play opportunities and have given up 17 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 81% this year. That is 13th in the NHL. They average 31 shots per game and as a team shoot 11.21% for the season. They allow 34 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 92%, which is ranked 7th in the league. The Maple Leafs has 37 total points this season, ranking 6th in the NHL in offense. They are 3rd in the league with 101 goals while they've given up 85 goals, which is 16th overall. They have had 86 power play opportunities and scored 19 goals on those chances for a percentage of 22%. That is 7th in the NHL.

Useful Team Statistics

As a team, the Penguins are 10th with 90 goals scored while they are 2nd in the NHL with 98 goals allowed this year. They average 35 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 8.52%. They give up 31 shots per game and have a save percentage of 90%, putting them in 26th place in the league. The Penguins have a total of 35 points this year, which is 10th in the NHL. They have 30 power play goals on 111 opportunities for a percentage of 27%. That ranks their power play unit 3rd. They've allowed 117 power play opportunities and have given up 24 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 79%, which is 17th overall.

Advanced Statistics

Toronto has a Corsi percentage of 49.9% as they've tried 1,745 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 1,753 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. That ranks them 16th in Corsi percentage. They are 26th in the NHL in Fenwick percentage with 48.4% as they have 1,270 shots while they've given up 1,355 attempts on defense. The Maple Leafs start possessions in the offensive zone 48.1% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 51.9% for the year. That puts them 28th and 8th in the league in zone percentages respectively. They have 956 face-off wins as opposed to 898 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 51.6%. That is 7th overall in the NHL. On defense Toronto has 634 hits and they've blocked 398 attempts from opposing offenses, which is 21st in the league.

Advanced Statistics

The Penguins are 10th in the league in starting possessions in the offensive zone, doing so 52.8% of the time. Their defensive zone percentage is at 47.2% for the season, which is 25th in the NHL. They have 963 face-off wins compared to 957 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 50.2%. That is 20th in the league. On defense Pittsburgh has 703 hits and they have blocked 463 shots from the opposition, which is 2nd in the league. Pittsburgh is 13th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 51.3% as they've attempted 1,826 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 1,736 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage of 52.6% ranks 5th as they have 1,415 attempts while they have given up 1,273 shots on the defensive end.

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

Tony's Pick: Take Pittsburgh -121

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