Total Look For Avalanche Vs Maple Leafs

Avalanche vs. Maple Leafs, 7:00 ET

It was a nice day on the ice yesterday as we captured a win in the NHL last night. I haven't been doing many games for hockey lately, but I have tried to incorporate more to balance some of the basketball content. We only have a few weeks remaining of College Basketball and the games will dwindle further and further as the tournament gets closer to the end. Tonight, I'm locked in on one of the few games that are on the hockey slate as the Avalanche take on the Maple Leafs.

This could be a potential Stanley Cup preview. The Avalanche are putting together a really nice campaign and are in position to make the playoffs, but there is still work to be done. Colorado is currently sitting with a 41-24-3 record for the season. On the road, though, the Avalanche have struggled to an 18-14-1 record. Even though this isn't where they have their biggest strengths, they are still at least decent on the road. They are also playing really good hockey at the moment. They are 4-1 over their past five and have won eight of their last nine games. They did have seven of those nine games at home though. This is the start of a road game. Their offense has scored three or more goals in 18 of their 33 road games, so they aren't terrible, but they are also fairly unreliable. They are scoring 3.34 goals per game for the season and they are allowing 2.87 goals to opponents. They are taking three more shots per game than their opponents. Tonight, they will likely have Mackenzie Blackwood in the net. He has been really good for the Avalanche as you'd probably expect. He is 24-16-6 overall with a 2.50 goals against per game average and a .915 save percentage. Those numbers are all in the top-10 of the league.

(Getty Images)

The Maple Leafs are one of the teams that should also find a way to make it into the playoffs. They are a competitive bunch and have all the things they need to make a good run in the playoffs. They enter tonight's game with a very similar record to the Avalanche, sitting at 40-24-3. They've been pretty consistent both on the road and at home. When protecting their home ice, they are 21-13-1. What is really interesting about the Maple Leafs is that they are scoring 3.21 goals per game, and they are allowing 2.96 goals per game, but they are allowing more shots to opponents than they are taking. Perhaps the quality is better for their shots. They are just 2-3 over their past five games, so not playing great hockey at the moment. Joseph Woll will be in the net tonight for Toronto. Woll is 23-12-0 for the season, allowing 2.76 goals against per game, and he has a .905 save percentage. He's been even better at home than he has been on the road.

With two evenly matched teams, picking a winner can be a challenge. I'm not sure that I have a great read on this game in terms of who will win, but I do lean toward the Avalanche. With these two goalies, I think this is a good chance this game goes under the total. There are probably some 6.5's out there, and I'd prefer that than under 5.5, but you can play it at plus money if you'd like. The current form of the Maple Leafs, the goalies, and the way the Avalanche play on the road all lead me to think this should be an under. 

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