Leafs vs Penguins Predictions, Props & Best Odds (Sunday, Mar. 2)

• The Pittsburgh Penguins host the Toronto Maple Leafs (37-20-2) Sunday at 1 p.m. at PPG Paints Arena.

• Toronto has won seven of its last eight games and leads the Atlantic Division by a point. Leafs forward Mitch Marner is tied for fourth in the NHL in points.

• Check out our prediction, preview, plus look at the props and best odds for this Sunday NHL matinee.

The Toronto Maple Leafs (37-20-2; 31-28 ATS) are starting to rise in the East and look to keep moving forward when they visit Pittsburgh (29-32 ATS) Sunday at 1 p.m.

The Penguins have dropped to the bottom of the Metropolitan Division and are several games out of the last wild card spot, but this game has serious star power with Auston Matthews and Sidney Crosby on the ice.

We’re all over this NHL battle with our look at the best odds, props plus our cool-as-ice prediction for Sunday.

Leafs vs Penguins Odds and Props

Odds as of March 1 at DraftKings Sportsbook. Gear up for March Madness with the best DraftKings promo code available.

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Toronto is 31-28 against the spread and 27-29 over/under this season. Entering Saturday’s game against the Bruins, the Penguins were 29-32 against the spread and 32-26 over/under.

The Penguins scored an impressive win over Toronto 5-2 back on Dec. 7.

Anytime the Penguins are involved, I favor the over. Pittsburgh has allowed the second most goals in the league at 3.59 a game. Neither one of their goalies: Alex Nedeljkovic and Joel Blomqvist have played well at all. Blomqvist is 4-9 this season with a whopping 3.63 goals against average.

For these reasons, I also am eyeing the game prop of the Leafs -1.5 and over 6.5 at DraftKings at +310. FanDuel also has Marner at +180 as an anytime goal scorer. Marner only has two goals in his last six games, but again, the Penguins defense is lousy.

Leafs Betting Trends

Toronto is the most cursed franchise in the NHL. The Leafs haven’t won a Cup since 1967 and hadn’t won a playoff series in 19 years before they finally knocked off the Lightning in 2023.

Now they’re about to tease their fans again. Marner is having a breakthrough year with 74 points and William Nylander has 34 goals.

Auston Matthews is only 27. He missed 15 games this season with an ‘upper body’ injury (that’s hockey code for shoulder or maybe elbow). He hasn’t played super great, but he’s still a threat. John Tavares is 34 now. He kind of picks his spots for Toronto now, and he’s still good on faceoffs.

Penguins Betting Trends

Pittsburgh is one of the oldest teams in the NHL. Crosby is 37 and I don’t know if its good or bad (probably bad) but he leads his team in points at 61. Rickard Rakell has emerged as another good offensive weapon for the Penguins with 49 points, but this is a team that looks old and plays old.

The Penguins goaltending has been a major problem this season. Everyone thought they’d get a great boost coming out of the 4 Nations Tournament with Crosby, but they lost their first three games after the break giving up 19 goals in the process.

Nedeljkovic was pulled after giving up three goals on 15 shots in Philly last week and replaced by Blomqvist. It was the second time that had happened in three starts. If you don’t have a No. 1 goalie, its hard to win in the NHL.

Leafs vs Penguins Prediction

• Leafs +1.5 at DraftKings (-124)

• Over 6.5 at DraftKings (-105)

I hate to kick the Penguins when they’re down, but they are a fading hockey team that is still riding the fumes of some previous Stanley Cup glory. I have to go with the Maple Leafs to win comfortably. Pittsburgh is also playing the second game of a back-to-back, yes, at home, but still. This is the final game of a four-game road trip for Toronto.

And it might be time to start thinking about the Leafs as a legit Stanley Cup contender and check out those Cup odds. The East is wide open. Winnipeg is dominating in the West, but they haven’t been through the gauntlet before. What’s worked for Toronto is that their major stars have settled into supporting roles, which makes them dangerous moving forward.