Don't Count on Auston Matthews, Maple Leafs Scoring against League's Best Defence in Dallas
The Toronto Maple Leafs and Dallas Stars are both top six in goals against average and should present a stellar showcase between two elite defences
Wednesday has a solid five-game slate of NHL action that should excite all hockey fans with several marquee matchups. The Robertson brothers face off in a matchup between two Stanley Cup contenders in the Maple Leafs and Stars while the Panthers take on the Wild in another exciting matchup between serious Cup contenders.
It should be a great night of games and we look to improve on some of our recent hot streaks like our 6-2 record on our last eight picks or our 31-23 record on game total and team unders this season.
All betting lines are from Bet365 and are subject to change. Hockey is a difficult sport to predict so please gamble responsibly.
Bet: Maple Leafs Stars Under 5.5 goals (+105)
This game presents a very obvious pick that people are neglecting. The over in total goals has garner 78 per cent of the public's picks when the Stars and Leafs both possess top six defences with Dallas having the best in the league.
The under six goals has become a classic spot for us this season as many look at teams with two prolific offences like Dallas and Toronto and assume something has to give and one side will get hot when this hasn't been the case almost all season.
Toronto's defence should take a step down as their goals against average explodes from 2.61 overall to 3.38 when playing on the road. However, they've managed to find ways to win when traveling to Texas as the Leafs have won six straight road games in Dallas and have limited the Stars to four total goals in their last three matchups.
The Stars should be able to respond with starting goaltender Jake Oettinger possessing a 13-4-0 record with a 1.95 goals against average and a .927 save percentage in his last 17 home games.
This may present a challenge to Leafs captain Auston Matthews, who is heating up lately and we certainly can't advise a bet on him in this spot. We should let you readers know that he has ten goals on the season with five of them coming in the last eight games and he has seven goals in his last six road games in Dallas.
There's a chance he could score as he's one of the league's most prolific goal scorers but certainly proceed with caution.