Tampa Bay and Toronto will close down their 2022 Stanley Cup Eastern Conference first-round series on Saturday, May 14, so here’s the best Lightning vs. Maple Leafs betting pick for Game 7 along with the latest odds update on Bookmaker Sportsbook.   

The Lightning head to Scotiabank Arena in Toronto as +105 moneyline underdogs. The Maple Leafs are listed as -125 home favorites, and the totals sit at 6.5 goals. 

The Bolts survived Game 6 rollercoaster                         

The Tampa Bay Lightning kept their bid for a three-peat alive, outlasting the Maple Leafs 4-3 as -120 home favorites in Game 6 this past Thursday. The reigning champs blew a two-goal lead, but they also managed to overcome a 3-2 deficit. 

Nikita Kucherov tied the game at 3-3 midway through the third period, while Brayed Point scored the winning goal with 1:56 left on the clock in overtime. Andrei Vasilevskiy posted nine of his 30 saves in overtime, tallying his 18th straight victory following a playoff loss. 

Vasilevskiy hasn’t impressed throughout this series. He’s recorded a 3.37 GAA and .885 save percentage after going 39-18-5 with a 2.49 GAA and .916 SV% in the regular season. Nikita Kucherov has two goals and six assists on his postseason tally, while Ondrej Palat and Ross Colton have scored three goals each. 

The Maple Leafs aim for their first playoff series victory in 18 years            

The Toronto Maple Leafs blew a huge chance to win their first playoff series since 2004. Last Thursday, they scored three goals in the second half of the second period, but the Maple Leafs allowed a 5-on-3 power-play opportunity in the third period that led to Nikita Kucherov’s goal. 

John Tavares scored a couple of goals, while William Nylander made a pair of dishes, but it wasn’t enough. Jack Campbell yielded four goals on 35 shots, and the 30-year-old netminder now owns a 3.33 GAA and .893 save percentage this postseason. 

Auston Matthews leads the way for the Maple Leafs in this series, tallying four goals and four assists. He’s found the back of the net in each of the previous two contests. William Nylander and John Tavares have scored three goals apiece, while Mitchell Marner has accounted for two goals and five assists. 

Trends:

Tampa Bay: 

  • 10-5 in the last 15 games overall 

Toronto:

  • 3-6 in the last nine playoff games 

Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Toronto Maple Leafs Pick 

Game 7 is always a joy to watch, but when it all comes down to one game, it’s tough to predict the outcome. Saturday’s clash in Canada could easily go either way, and I lean the visitors only because they have more experience than the Maple Leafs, who have been eliminated in the first round each of the previous five years. 

After smashing the Maple Leafs 7-3 in Game 4 at home, the Lightning blew a two-goal lead in a 4-3 loss in Game 5 at Scotiabank Arena. The momentum might be on Tampa Bay’s side, as the Bolts managed to recover from another blown lead in Game 6. 

Pick: Take Tampa Bay Lightning at +105             

The Total:

The Maple Leafs love to play at a fast tempo. They own plenty of dangerous offensive weapons, but Toronto’s defense could be a problem. On the other side, the Lightning are a top-notch attacking team as well, but their defense has been a disappointment thus far. 

The total has gone over in the previous five meetings between the Maple Leafs and Bolts. I’ll rely on this betting trend, but you never know what can happen in Game 7. 

Pick: Go over 6.5 goals at -110