Toronto Maple Leafs vs Tampa Bay Lightning: Game preview, predictions and odds

Toronto Maple Leafs vs Tampa Bay Lightning: Game preview, predictions and odds | April 9, 2025

Modified Apr 09, 2025 15:29 GMT

NHL: Toronto Maple Leafs at Florida Panthers - Source: Imagn — Toronto Maple Leafs vs Tampa Bay Lightning: Game preview, predictions and odds | April 9, 2025 (image credit: IMAGN)

The Toronto Maple Leafs are on the road to face the Tampa Bay Lightning in a massive division game on Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET.

They are coming off different results as Toronto (47-26-4) lost 3-1 to Florida on Tuesday while Tampa Bay (45-26-6) won 5-1 over the New York Rangers on Monday.

Maple Leafs vs Lightning: Head-to-head & key stats

Toronto is 65-39-2-8 all-time against Tampa Bay
The Maple Leafs are averaging 3.24 goals per game
Tampa Bay is 27-8-2 at home
Toronto is allowing 2.88 goals per game
The Lightning are averaging 3.55 goals per game
The Maple Leafs are 22-12-3 on the road
Tampa Bay is allowing 2.58 goals per game

Toronto Maple Leafs vs Tampa Bay Lightning: Preview

If Toronto loses to Tampa Bay, the team will be second in the division. The Maple Leafs are led by Mitch Marner's 94 points, William Nylander's 82 points, Auston Matthews' 71 points and John Tavares' 71 points.

They will start Anthony Stolarz, who is 18-8-3 with a 2.26 GAA and a .922 SV%. In his career against Tampa Bay, he is 1-0-1 with a 2.96 GAA and a .908 SV%.

Meanwhile, Tampa Bay snapped a two-game losing skid and will return home. The team will start Andrei Vasilevskiy who is 37-20-3 with a 2.14 GAA and a .922 SV%. In his career against Toronto, he is 15-12-2 with a 2.66 GAA and a .916 SV%.

The Lightning are led by Nikita Kucherov who has 115 points, Brandon Hagel with 83 points, Brayden Point with 79 points, Jake Guentzel with 77 points and Victor Hemdan with 61 points.

Leafs vs Lightning: Odds & Prediction

Toronto is a +150 underdog while Tampa Bay is a -180 favorite. The over/under is set at 6.5 goals.

This is a crucial game, as the winner will likely win the Atlantic Division. Tampa Bay has been dominant at home, and that success should continue as Toronto is on a back-to-back and has some tired legs.

Vasilevskiy will continue to shut the door as the Lightning will edge out a big win at home and take control of the division.

Prediction: Lightning 4, Leafs 2.

Maple Leafs vs Lightning: Betting Tips

Tip 1: Tampa Bay ML (-180)

Tip 2: Under 6.5 goals (-135)

Tip 3: Auston Matthews 4+ shots on goals (-115)

About the author

Cole is an NHL, NFL and College Sports reporter at Sportskeeda with over 7 years of experience writing for publications like CBC, USA Today, SMG, BJPENN, Sherdog and SB Nation.

An NHL fan his whole life, Cole played rep hockey in Canada from age 5 until 17 and grew up rooting for Martin St. Louis and the Tampa Bay Lightning. His all-time favorite players are Vincent Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos, while Jon Cooper is his favorite coach of all time.

Cole attended Sheridan College and received his journalism degree in 2019. After decades of watching and reporting, he considers his knowledge of sports as his primary strength. He ensures that the same story has been reported by at least two reputed reporters before creating it.

Cole enjoys playing golf and spending time with friends and family when not reporting breaking stories. His favorite sports moment is from the 2010 Olympics, when Sidney Crosby scored the golden goal in overtime to beat Team USA for the gold medal.

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Edited by Victor Ramon Galvez