PREMIUM
Rogers' ICE BREAKER >> 8-1 Overall L3 Days!
(NHL) NY Islanders vs. Toronto,
Money Line: -180.00 Toronto (Home)
Result: Win
Money Line: -180.00 Toronto (Home)
Result: Win
The set-up: The 28-18-5 Toronto Maple Leafs have 61 points, good enough for third-place in the Atlantic Division. The really good news is the top-three teams in each division qualify for the playoffs and the Maple Leafs own a 15-point lead over the Atlantic's fourth-place team (hard to blow that advantage). Oddly enough, Toronto welcomes the 25-21-2 NY Islanders to Air Canada Centre having lost four straight home contests (0-2-2). The Islanders play in the much tougher Metropolitan Division and with 55 points, will likely be fighting for one of the two wild card spots. New York will be coming to Toronto in a bad mood after suffering a 4-1 home loss to Florida on Tuesday, allowing 40 shots and totaling 21 giveaways.
NY Islanders: Captain John Tavares leads the team in scoring (57 points) despite being kept off the scoresheet in three straight contests. All-Star Josh Bailey (12 G / 43 A) notched an assist on Tuesday and has collected five in his last five games to move within two points of Tavares for the team lead. Casey Cizikas (five goals, 11 points) returned to the lineup Tuesday for the first time since suffering an upper-body injury on Jan. 13 while veteran defenseman Johnny Boychuk (lower body) has been skating and could be back on the blue line soon.
Toronto: The Maple Leafs have a comfortable cushion in the playoff race and could get top-four defenseman Nikita Zaitsev (broken foot) back in the lineup as early as Wednesday. Defenseman Morgan Rielly (upper body), who is fourth on the team with 31 points, has missed the last four games but is skating while Zaitsev will be a game-time decision after being out since Dec. 15. All-Star Auston Matthews has recorded three of his team-leading 22 goals in the last four games and tops Toronto with 37 points - one more than William Nylander, who has notched four points in his last three contests.
The pick: The Maple Leafs went into the break on a high note, winning two games in a row, to give them a 5-2-3 mark in their last 10 games. This is their first game since the break, while the Islanders lost Tuesday at home to Florida. The Islanders are just 12-13-2 on the road, where they are allowing an 'ugly' 3.63 GPG. Toronto is just 0-2-2 its last four games at home but had gone 13-6-0 before that. The team's home "mini-slump" ends here. Make Toronto an 8* play.
NY Islanders: Captain John Tavares leads the team in scoring (57 points) despite being kept off the scoresheet in three straight contests. All-Star Josh Bailey (12 G / 43 A) notched an assist on Tuesday and has collected five in his last five games to move within two points of Tavares for the team lead. Casey Cizikas (five goals, 11 points) returned to the lineup Tuesday for the first time since suffering an upper-body injury on Jan. 13 while veteran defenseman Johnny Boychuk (lower body) has been skating and could be back on the blue line soon.
Toronto: The Maple Leafs have a comfortable cushion in the playoff race and could get top-four defenseman Nikita Zaitsev (broken foot) back in the lineup as early as Wednesday. Defenseman Morgan Rielly (upper body), who is fourth on the team with 31 points, has missed the last four games but is skating while Zaitsev will be a game-time decision after being out since Dec. 15. All-Star Auston Matthews has recorded three of his team-leading 22 goals in the last four games and tops Toronto with 37 points - one more than William Nylander, who has notched four points in his last three contests.
The pick: The Maple Leafs went into the break on a high note, winning two games in a row, to give them a 5-2-3 mark in their last 10 games. This is their first game since the break, while the Islanders lost Tuesday at home to Florida. The Islanders are just 12-13-2 on the road, where they are allowing an 'ugly' 3.63 GPG. Toronto is just 0-2-2 its last four games at home but had gone 13-6-0 before that. The team's home "mini-slump" ends here. Make Toronto an 8* play.
