For the first time in this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs we get a Game 7, as the Toronto Maple Leafs visit the Boston Bruins on Wednesday night on NBCSN. This series looked to be over after Boston took three of the first four games, but the Maple Leafs have bounced back to win the last two games and even the series. The Bruins are listed as home favorites on Wednesday night. Let’s look at Wednesday’s game and NHL Playoff picks.
At 7:30 p.m. ET, tune into NBCSN for live television coverage of this NHL game on Wednesday, April 25, 2018, at TD Garden.
NHL odds are on the board at BookMaker.eu for all of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Odds Analysis
Boston -165, total 5.5 under
The Maple Leafs were not that great during the regular season on the road, as they went 20-21 and they have lost two of three on the road in this series. Boston was excellent at home during the regular season, as they won 28 games and lost just 13. Boston had a chance to close out this series at home in Game 5 but failed, losing 4-3. Now they get a second chance to win this series at home on Wednesday night.
Something that has been almost forgotten is that Boston could have avoided playing Toronto altogether had they just won at home against Florida in the final game of the season, as Boston would have faced New Jersey. Now the Bruins have to find a way to beat the Maple Leafs in a Game 7. All of the pressure is on Boston, as they are on the verge of blowing a 3-1 series lead.
Key Player
If the Maple Leafs are to win this game on Wednesday night they need their best player to finally show up in this series. Auston Matthews is considered one of the bright young stars in the game today, but he has done next to nothing in this series. If he is a true superstar then he needs to prove it on the biggest stage in Game 7 and lead the Maple Leafs to victory.
Key Stat
You might think that Boston would have a big home ice advantage against the Leafs but that has really not been the case. The teams have split their last ten meetings in Boston, with the last two going over the total. Digging a little deeper with the total, we find that in the last nine meetings between the teams in Boston, the two teams have combined to score at least five goals every time. Because the total has been 5.5 or 6, not every game has gone over.
Free NHL Picks
I know that most people are going to automatically pick the Bruins to win this game because they are at home. I am not entirely sold on Boston, as they should have already won this series and now all the pressure is on the Bruins. We do know that Mike Babcock knows how to win big games and Fredrik Andersen has looked like the better goaltender recently. If I was confident that Matthews would show up I would definitely go with the Maple Leafs at plus money. Since I am unsure about Matthews I will focus on the total. Both teams have been getting a ton of scoring chances in this series but the goaltenders have really played pretty well. I don’t know that both of them can stem the tide on Wednesday night. Toronto was the 4th highest scoring team in the NHL this season, while the Bruins were the 6th highest scoring team. Recent meetings in this series in Boston have been high scoring and I think this could be another shootout. I will go over the total in Game 7 on Wednesday night.
NHL Odds: Maple Leafs 4, Bruins 3
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