Maple Leafs vs. Sabres same-game parlay picks: Bet Toronto to win a high-scoring matchup
If the Toronto Maple Leafs and Buffalo Sabres score the way we’re hoping they will tonight, there should be plenty of options for building a same-game parlay.
The pregame narrative: John Tavares and Alex Tuch both found the score sheet when these teams played in November, and we’re banking on them to do so again. Neither team should have too much issue generating offence, but the Maple Leafs could take greater advantage against a team that struggles at home.
Here are our best Maple Leafs vs. Sabres same-game parlay picks for February 21.
NHL odds as of 11:10 a.m. on 02/21/2023.
Maple Leafs vs. Sabres same-game parlay
Parlay: Tavares 1+ points + Tuch 1+ points + Maple Leafs ML (+290)
Tavares 1+ points (-225): One of Tavares’ top offensive performances of the season came against Buffalo, as he scored a goal and added two assists in their last matchup.
Funnily enough, Tavares only had one shot on goal in that game. Perhaps it’ll only take one shot for him to clear this line again, but he’s generating far more chances than that nowadays.
Tavares has at least one point in 14 of his past 19 appearances (73.7%), rifling 4.3 shots on goal per game in that span.
The addition of Ryan O’Reilly has bumped Tavares to the second-line wing — and that’s not a demotion. It just means he should have a greater opportunity to shoot, and ideally a greater opportunity to register a point.
Other parlay picks
Tuch 1+ points (-159): On his third team in his seventh NHL season, Tuch might be bordering on journeyman status. But the 26-year-old is under contract with the Sabres for a while longer, and they should be motivated to keep him thanks to this year’s breakout campaign.
Tuch has a career-high 59 points in just 54 games, thriving on Buffalo’s top line. Alongside all-star centre Tage Thompson, Tuch skates over 19 minutes per night and fires nearly three shots on net per game.
The winger has cashed on this prop in 10 of his past 13 games, posting 14 points in that span. He’s posted a point in 64.8% of all games, including a goal scored against Toronto in November.
Maple Leafs ML (-175): Toronto is coming off a surprising loss in Chicago, but this is still a top-notch club that has won just shy of 60% of its games — including a 5-2 win over Buffalo in their first meeting of the season.
The Leafs did not have their best fastball on that night, but they still slid five pucks past Sabres goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen on 23 shots. Whether Luukkonen is back in the cage or not tonight, Buffalo’s propensity to allow high-danger chances (13.1 per 60, 10th-most in the league) is an issue.
We aren’t counting Buffalo’s home-ice status as an advantage, either, because the Sabres have squandered many of their chances to win in front of a friendly crowd.
In fact, Buffalo’s 11-14-2 home record is notably worse than Toronto’s 12-9-4 road record.
