It's been an amazing NHL season so far, and now we're entering the business end with the NHL playoffs clash between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Tampa Bay Lightning.
After meeting at this stage of the playoffs in the 2022 season, the two teams went at it in game 1 of the series again with the Lightning coming out shock winners to take the early advantage.
We'll take a look at the two teams and the meeting in game 2 of the series, before providing you with our best free NHL picks to try and earn you some extra cash before you watch some excellent ice hockey action.
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NHL Playoffs: Game 2 information
- Thursday, April 20th 2023
- 19:00 ET
- Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, Canada
- Game 2: Tampa Bay lead 1-0
NHL Playoffs: Series so far
The Lightning claimed a hugely shocking and convincing win in Game 1 of the series, winning by a 7-3 scoreline in the Scotiabank Arena.
The Maple Leafs were expected to dominate and win the game, but they didn't lead the game for even one second as Tampa took an early 3-0 lead in the first period. Pierre-Edouard Bellemere opened the scoring after just 78 seconds, before Anthony Cirelli doubled their lead just minutes later. Nikita Kucherov then slammed home on a power play just second before the interval.
Ryan O'Reilly and William Nylander cut the deficit midway through the second period, but Tampa seemed to be kicked into life because of it and went on to score four straight goals thanks to Corey Perry, Ross Colton and a double from Brayden Point. Toronto got a consolation goal in the final period through Calle Karnkrok, but the damage was already done.
NHL Playoffs: Game 2 preview
It should also be noted that despite the impressive performance of Tampa in Game 1, they managed to do it while losing some key players to injury during the game.
Defensemen Victor Hedman and Erik Cernak were both injured in the second period as was forward Michael Eyssimont, and it's currently unclear if they'll be cleared to return in time for Game 2.
On the other hand Toronto could find themselves to be without Michael Bunting after he received a match penalty for an illegal head check on Cernak, with a hearing scheduled for Wednesday with the NHL Player Department for Safety.
During the regular season Tampa had a 46-30-6 record, with their defense ranked 14th across the NHL for goals against (252), while their attack faired better in 8th with 280 goals scored. Compare that to Toronto who had a regular season record of 50-21-11, with a defense that ranked them in 7th for goals against (220) while they ranked 9th for attack with 278 goals scored.
NHL picks: Tampa Bay Lightning to win
The entire hockey world is well-versed regarding Toronto’s shortcomings over the past few seasons. After the shock defeat in game 1, they have a chance to put things right and get back on level terms before they hit the road in this series.
Ryan O’Reilly is set to center Toronto’s second line alongside William Nylander and John Tavares, providing the Leafs with a two-headed monster up front after the top unit of Mitch Marner, Auston Matthews, and Michael Bunting, something we didn't see over the final few weeks of the regular season.
Toronto ranks fifth in the NHL in expected goals per 60 minutes (xGoals/60), so they should be able to push the pace and dictate play while correcting the mistakes of the first game. Expect a statement victory from the blue and white in Game 2.
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NHL picks: Back the overs
The first meeting of this season between these two teams back in December 2022 went to overtime, with the Lightning eventually claiming a 4-3 win.
The second meeting a few weeks later saw the Maple Leafs dominate and claim a 4-1 win, before the third and final meeting between the teams in the regular season produced a 4-3 win for Toronto again.
Pair those results with the first game in the series which ended 7-3 to Tampa Bay, and you can see why we're backing the Over which is set at 6 goals for the game.
On average this season Toronto have averaged 3.39 goals per 60 minutes, while Tampa Bay averaged 3.42 goals per 60 minutes. If both hit their averages, this bet lands. Defensively the averages fall ever so slightly short of the target number (3.07 for Tampa, 2.68 for Toronto) when it comes to goals conceded per game, but the balance of the series and the fact Toronto are desperate for the win means they'll be far more offensive.
If they push too much they'll leave openings at the back to be exploited, and we know that Tampa are capable of punishing them. Expect goals and Toronto to get themselves on the scoreboard for this series.
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