Toronto vs Minnesota Prediction 30 January 2025

🔊 Will the "Maple Leafs" break their streak of failures? Toronto is still in turmoil. One of the Eastern leaders plays strictly in series. After several successful matches, a series of defeats inevitably follows. Nevertheless, even such results allow the team to stay in the top 3 of the conference. Minnesota, in turn, is struggling to emerge from a full-blown crisis that occurred with the team in mid-January.

📊 Head-to-head

In the current regular season, the opponents have already met once. In early November, the "Wild" barely won on their home ice in overtime (2:1). The teams were extremely active and made a total of over 60 shots, but only converted this into three goals. The hero of the encounter was Minnesota defenseman Jared Spurgeon. The Canadian made two assists and thus participated in all the scoring actions of his team.

🔵 Toronto

Craig Berube's wards cannot find stability. This quality was lacking for the team last season as well. The change of head coach apparently did not solve the problem. Sometimes the star-studded attack of the Canadian team shuts down for entire stretches, ruining all efforts. Thus, after three convincing victories, Toronto lost twice in a row to Columbus (1:5) and Ottawa (1:2). Opponents not particularly known for their defense managed to score only two goals in 120 minutes. Disheartening results for such a renowned attacking line.

🟢 Minnesota

The "Wild" are gradually coming out of a prolonged slump. In the last four games, John Hynes' wards managed to secure two victories over Colorado (3:1) and Chicago (4:2). Yes, it's hard to call it a qualitative leap, but after four defeats in five games, even these local successes allow the team to maintain a position in the top 8 of the West. Not immediately, but Kirill Kaprizov's return to form is beginning to show. The team leader is scoring points and looks stronger every day. The visitors still have a small margin of safety in the standings, and they are certainly capable of stopping the decline.

📌 Probable lineups

Toronto: Woll - Ekman-Larsson, Tanev - McMann, Matthews, Marner

Minnesota: Gustavsson - Middleton, Faber - Kaprizov, Eriksson, Zuccarello

🥅 Goalkeepers

Toronto's goaltender Joseph Woll has maintained a 90% save rate in three consecutive games and has earned high praise for his play. The American handles increased pressure and gives the team numerous chances. It's not his fault that his teammates managed only one goal against Ottawa.

Minnesota's goaltender Filip Gustavsson has yet to find his form after an injury. In his last six games, he managed to save 90% of shots on goal only once. The simultaneous slump in both the goalkeeper's play and his team's performance does not seem coincidental. Much depends on the Swede here, and his mistakes are exacerbating the team's standings.

📝 Editorial prediction

Matches against the "Wild" have long been quite successful for the "Maple Leafs." This usually does not depend on the venue or the current standings of the teams. The Canadian club almost always takes its routine points. Craig Berube's wards have not lost to players from St. Paul in 9 consecutive head-to-head matches. We believe that this trend will remain relevant. Our key bet is Toronto will not lose.