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The New Jersey Devils (37-37-5) take on the Toronto Maple Leafs (46-23-9) Thursday evening in the 2nd game of a home-and-home series. Puck drop from Scotiabank Arena is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET (ESPN+). Below, we analyze FanDuel Sportsbook’s lines around the Devils vs. Maple Leafs odds, and make our expert NHL picks and predictions.
New Jersey was defeated 5-2 in Newark by Toronto Tuesday night and was officially eliminated from playoff contention. This is the 3rd meeting between these teams this season, with the prior games going over the total.
New Jersey cashed as a (+126) underdog with a 6-3 win in Toronto March 26. C Nico Hischier finished with 3 points (1 goal and 2 assists). Maple Leafs RW Mitch Marner, who is tied for 2nd on the team with RW William Nylander in points per game (1.2), and D Morgan Rielly, Toronto’s points leader on defense, did not play in that game due to injuries.
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Devils at Maple Leafs odds
Provided by FanDuel Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 12:15 p.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Devils +164 (bet $100 to win $164) | Maple Leafs -200 (bet $200 to win $100)
- Puck line (PL)/Against the spread (ATS): Devils +1.5 (-142) | Maple Leafs -1.5 (+118)
- Over/Under (O/U): 6.5 (O: -106 | U: -114)
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Devils at Maple Leafs projected goalies
Jake Allen (11-17-4, 3.37 GAA, .899 SV%) vs. Ilya Samsonov (23-6-7, 3.00 GAA, .895 SV%, 3 SO)
Allen appears set to start against Toronto once again as Kaapo Kahkonen deals with a lower body injury. The 33-year-old has been victorious just once in his last 5 starts, but is 9-8-1 with a .915 SV% and a 2.81 GAA in 21 career games vs. Toronto.
Samsonov had won his last 5 starts before getting the night off in the Tuesday night matchup vs. New Jersey. The 27-year-old has been outstanding since Jan. 21, and is 6-1-1 with a .914 SV% and 2.63 GAA in 8 career games played vs. the Devils.
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Devils at Maple Leafs picks and predictions
Prediction
Maple Leafs 4, Devils 3
Moneyline
PASS.
The Leafs have clinched the playoffs, while the Devils have nothing to play for, and their superstar C Jack Hughes has been shut down for the season. I’m certainly not going to fault anyone who includes Toronto in a ML parlay. I just wonder if the Leafs play not to get hurt, as they have 4 more regular-season games before the postseason starts.
Puck line/Against the spread
BET DEVILS +1.5 (-146).
New Jersey has guys that are playing for jobs next season, so I do not expect that they will lay down for this Toronto team. LW Jesper Bratt just saw his 8-game point streak snapped in Tuesday’s loss to Toronto. Expect his stat sheet Thursday night to be more similar to the March 26 matchup where he recorded 3 assists.
Over/Under
BET OVER 6.5 (-106).
C Auston Matthews has been a goal-scoring machine this season as he leads the league with 66, the most in a single season by any active player. The 26-year-old is in the midst of a 6-game goal scoring streak as he hopes to become the 1st 70-goal scorer since Brett Hull back in 1991-92.
This Devils defense is really young, and it sorely misses D Dougie Hamilton. New Jersey enters Thursday having surrendered the 4th-most rebound shots against in the NHL (223), so expect Matthews and Nylander, who has a 2nd straight 40-goal season, to feast on 2nd-chance opportunities.
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