The Toronto Maple Leafs can reclaim the division lead with the Chicago Blackhawks in town.
The pregame narrative: With the lead in the Atlantic on the line, I’m trusting the Maple Leafs’ top dogs to get it done. Therefore, I have prop picks on Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner.
Check out our Maple Leafs props vs. Blackhawks for the game on Dec. 2.
Maple Leafs props vs. Blackhawks
Go to full NHL betting markets.
Best Bet: Matthews over 4.5 shots (+100)
This is a great matchup for Toronto’s top forwards.
- Chicago allows the sixth-most shots against per game (31.0).
- The Blackhawks give up the 17th most goals on average (3.1)
I also like Matthews to score tonight but those odds are too juiced for my liking (-143), so I will roll with his shots prop in a good matchup.
The Leafs’ captain hasn’t been as productive this season with only five goals and 58 shots in 14 games.
That’s still 4.14 shots per game, however, so I expect an uptick in goals as the year carries on.
Matthews averaged 4.6 shots per game last season and this is a good team to get back on track against. He had just two shots in his return against the Lightning but also had 20:23 of ice time.
With an increase in playing time and a soft landing spot against the Blackhawks, he should have plenty of good looks at goal tonight.
Key stat: Matthews had 12 shots in two games against Chicago last season.
Quick pick
Marner to score 2+ points (+130): Marner held down the fort in Matthews’ absence. He scored 15 points in nine games and added two points in Matthews’ first game back.
With that performance, Marner now has multiple points in eight of his last 10 games.
He’s on an incredible run and I think it’s safe to assume the return of Matthews will help his production, especially on the powerplay.
Again, I have to stress that this is a strong matchup against the Blackhawks. They’ve allowed three or more goals in seven of their last eight road games.
If Toronto can produce an offensive outbreak at home, I can see Marner being heavily involved, like usual.
Picks made at 12:11 p.m. ET on 12/02/24.
Spencer is a true sports junkie. A graduate of the Sports Journalism program at Centennial College, he first joined NorthStar Gaming as an intern in 2023. He is now a contributing writer. He loves finding the edge to bet on in all sports but has a deep passion for the NBA and UFC. Previous stops include Sportsnet.