{"id":331306,"date":"2025-03-02T10:50:15","date_gmt":"2025-03-02T15:50:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cms.northstargaming.ca\/admin\/nsgcms\/?p=331306"},"modified":"2025-03-02T10:51:30","modified_gmt":"2025-03-02T15:51:30","slug":"maple-leafs-prop-picks-vs-penguins-march-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cms.northstargaming.ca\/admin\/nsgcms\/maple-leafs-prop-picks-vs-penguins-march-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Maple Leafs prop picks vs. Penguins March 2: Bet on Auston Matthews to top shots prop"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Toronto Maple Leafs aim to earn an important two points against an inferior Pittsburgh Penguins squad on Sunday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pregame narrative:<\/strong> Pittsburgh is playing its second game in as many days, which gives Toronto an advantage in a game where it’s already the better team. I’m expecting Auston Matthews to pepper the Penguins with shots, and I like Matthew Knies to find the score sheet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Check out my Maple Leafs prop picks vs. the Penguins for March 2.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maple Leafs prop picks vs. Penguins<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Best Bet: Matthews over 3.5 shots (-134)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is a very fair number to back Matthews at on most nights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Toronto’s captain is also its top shooter. He leads the team in shots per game (3.93) and owns one of the most lethal shots in the NHL.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He’s operating with a shooter’s mindset ahead of this contest, too, registering 50 shots in his last 12 games (4.17).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The matchup is juicier than a cookout hamburger, as Matthews and the Maple Leafs battle a Pittsburgh team struggling all over the ice this season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Penguins are allowing the fifth-most shots per game (30.2) and are battling a rest disadvantage after losing to the Boston Bruins on Saturday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Matthews has dominated the Penguins in two contests this season. He totalled four and eight shots, respectively, in his two dates with Pittsburgh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bet on Matthews to top this prop for the third time against the Pens this season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key stat:<\/strong> Matthews has recorded four-plus shots in eight of his last 12 games.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Quick pick<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Knies to score 1+ points (-118):<\/strong> There are plenty of reasons to like this prop. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For starters, his recent form is encouraging. Knies has a point in seven of his past 11 games \u2014 including back-to-back \u2014 while averaging a healthy 18:03 in ice time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Secondly, his deployment inside Toronto’s lineup is mouthwatering. Knies skates on the team’s first line alongside Matthews and Mitch Marner while also serving on the squad’s top power-play unit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Playing consistent minutes with Toronto’s top talents is a huge positive for Knies’ production.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It helps that he’s staring down a date with a Pens squad that has been absolutely dreadful in their own zone. Pittsburgh is ceding the second-most goals per game (3.58) and has the second-worst save percentage in the league (.882).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bet on a point from Knies in a plus matchup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Picks made at 10:22 a.m. ET 03\/02\/2025.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Toronto Maple Leafs aim to earn an important two points against an inferior Pittsburgh Penguins squad on Sunday. The pregame narrative: Pittsburgh is playing its second game in as many days, which gives Toronto an advantage in a game where it’s already the better team. I’m expecting Auston Matthews to pepper the Penguins with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":331305,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"sidebar_plugin_meta_block_field":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[452,58],"tags":[49],"class_list":["post-331306","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-com","category-nhl","tag-nhl"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nMaple Leafs prop picks vs. Penguins: March 2 | NorthStar Bets<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Check out our Maple Leafs prop picks vs. Penguins for March 2. 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