NHL Saturday Night Picks - Pittsburgh Penguins at Toronto Maple Leafs

Pittsburgh Penguins at Toronto Maple Leafs

Saturday, October 10 – Air Canada Centre, Toronto 

The defending Stanley Cup Champs are coming off a huge win, beating the Philadelphia Flyers 5-4 on Thursday. It was an important win for the Penguins to prove to themselves and the rest of the NHL that they are still one of the best teams in the league, even after losing 3-0 to the Coyotes earlier in the week.   

Toronto knew offense was going to be a problem coming in, but after their poor showing against Ottawa on Tuesday they may not have known how much of a problem they had. The team looked lifeless against the Sens, and the loss of rookie Viktor Stalberg to a concussion doesn’t help their attack. It’s early, but after stinkers against the Capitals and Senators, the Leafs are inching closer to the panic button.  

What The Penguins Have To Do To Win:

This will be the type of game where Crosby and Malkin won’t have to be perfect in order for Pittsburgh to win. An average Sidney Crosby is more talented than anyone on the Leafs squad. The Leafs clearly are unhappy with Vesa Toskala’s play as of late, and are only starting him on Saturday because of the injury to rookie Jonas Gustavsson. The way the Pens are stacked on offense you can expect lots of scoring on Pittsburgh’s end.  

A matchup between the Pens defense and Leafs offense stacks up in Pittsburgh’s favor. A strong goalie in Fleury doesn’t hurt either. The Pens don’t have to do anything fancy against Toronto. Just play their game of smart, open-ice hockey and the win will come. 

What The Maple Leafs Have To Do To Win:

Somehow the Leafs need to put the puck in the net when it counts. Toronto has eight goals in three games so far this season and while that may sound ok, half of the goals came during garbage time in a loss against Washington last Saturday. When Matt Stajan, who has three goals in three games, is carrying the offensive load something is wrong.  

The Leafs spent their offseason retooling the blue line, but their defense still looks as shaky and inconsistent as last year. With Toskala the number one goaltender, Francois Beauchemin and Mike Komisarek need to step up and prove they’re worth the money they were signed too. Otherwise they (and Brian Burke) may start to feel the heat from Leafs Nation.  

Outlook & Pick 

The Pens have one of the league’s most explosive offenses and the Leafs are battling defense and goalie problems. It doesn’t take a genius to see Pittsburgh has the edge in this one. The Leafs do have the edge of being well-rested, as the Pens have played twice since Tuesday and Toronto not once.

However even a tired Penguins team is better than a well-rested Leafs team. At times Toronto has looked downright awful this season and trends like that don’t change when you play the defending Stanley Cup Champions. Expect Vesa Toskala to hear the boo-birds early and often from the home crowd.  

Pick: Pittsburgh Penguins