Toronto Maple Leafs vs Columbus Blue Jackets: Game preview, predictions, and odds | October 22, 2024

On Tuesday, the Toronto Maple Leafs and Columbus Blue Jackets will compete in an inter-conference matchup that will see the Maple Leafs look to build on a dominant win on Monday over the Tampa Bay Lightning, while on the flip side, the Columbus Blue Jackets will look to bounce back from a loss to the Minnesota Wild on Saturday.

The Maple Leafs (4-2-0) are sitting in second place in the Atlantic Division behind the 4-2-1 Flordia Panthers with nine points. On the other hand, the Blue Jackets are sitting in second-to-last place in the Metropolitan Division with a 2-3-0 record.

Heading into Tuesday's game, the Maple Leafs have several players sidelined with injuries. In addition to Dakota Mermis, Jani Hakanpaa, Calle Jarnkrok, Connor Dewar and Fraser Minten all on long-term injured reserve, Joseph Woll (lower body) is also sidelined with a lower-body injury despite practicing on Friday.

The Columbus Blue Jackets have several players injured as well. Erik Gudbranson, Dmitri Voronkov, Boone Jenner, and Gavin Brindley are all on injured reserve. In addition, Kent Johnson is out with an upper-body injury, and Elvis Merzlikins is day-to-day with a lower-body injury.

Toronto Maple Leafs vs Columbus Blue Jackets prediction

Although Tuesday's game will be the second leg of a back-to-back for the Toronto Maple Leafs, given that the team has jumped out to a hot start this season, expect them to keep the momentum rolling in Columbus.

The Columbus Blue Jackets have been struggling to find consistency amid a slew of injuries, which have proven to be disastrous for the franchise through the early part of the season.

With the Toronto Maple Leafs' first line finding its rhythm and Auston Matthews finding the back of the net in each of the team's last three games, Daniil Tarasov could be in for a long night.

Toronto Maple Leafs vs Columbus Blue Jackets odds

The latest betting odds support our prediction for Tuesday's game, with the Maple Leafs sitting as comfortable betting favorites on most major US sportsbooks. On FanDuel, the team is a -240 favorite heading into tonight's game, while Columbus is sitting as a +195 underdog.

These odds are also consistent with those seen on DraftKings, where Toronto is a -230 favorite and Columbus is a +190 underdog.

To simplify these odds using the latest odds from DraftKings, it would take a $230 bet on Toronto as the favorite to win $100, whereas a $100 bet on Columbus, the underdog, would win $190.

Note: Odds are subject to change before puck-drop.