The Toronto Maple Leafs and the Boston Bruins meet Saturday in Game 1 Eastern Conference NHL Playoffs action at the PNC Arena. Here’s a Maple Leafs vs. Bruins prediction.

Toronto Maple Leafs Team Preview

The Toronto Maple Leafs come into the playoffs after finishing the year with a record of 46-26-10 this season. Auston Matthews leads the Leafs with 107 points including a team-high 69 goals along with 38 assists while William Nylander has 98 points with 40 goals and 58 assists. Mitch Marner has 85 points with a team-high 59 assists while John Tavares has 65 points with 29 goals and 36 assists and Morgan Rielly has 58 points with 51 assists this season. Ilya Samsonov has gone 23-7-8 with a 3.13 GAA and an .890 save percentage and Joseph Woll has posted a 12-11-1 record with a 2.94 GAA and a .907 save percentage while Martin Jones is also 11-8-1 with a 2.87 GAA and a .902 save percentage as well this season.

Toronto Maple Leafs Team Facts

• The Maple Leafs have won five of their last six games as underdogs against opponents on a losing streak.
• The Maple Leafs have covered the puck line in nine of their last 10 games as underdogs following a road loss.
• The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 1′ market has hit in each of the Maple Leafs’ last six games as underdogs.
• The favorites have won the second period in each of the Maple Leafs’ last eight games.

Boston Bruins Team Preview

The Boston Bruins enter the playoffs after ending the year with a record of 47-20-15. David Pastrnak leads the Bruins in scoring with 110 points including a team-high 47 goals and 63 assists while Brad Marchand has 67 points with 29 goals and 38 assists. Charlie Coyle has 60 points with 25 goals and 35 assists while Charlie McAvoy has 47 points with 35 assists and Pavel Zacha has 59 points with 21 goals and 38 assists. Jeremy Swayman’s gone 25-10-8 with a 2.53 GAA and a .916 save percentage for the Bruins in goal while Linus Ullmark is 22-10-7 with a 2.58 GAA and a .915 save percentage this season.

Boston Bruins Team Facts

• The Bruins have won each of their last seven games against the Maple Leafs.
• The Bruins have covered the puck line in nine of their last 10 games against the Maple Leafs following a loss.
• The Bruins have lost the second period in each of their last four night games at TD Garden.
• The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 2′ market has hit in each of the Bruins’ last nine Saturday night games.

Maple Leafs vs. Bruins Prediction

I’m on the Bruins here. I love my Maple Leafs, but in this kind of playoff series, I need to see Toronto steal home ice before really trusting them in this series. There’s also the elephant in the room for the Leafs that Boston’s won the last 7 meetings head-to-head between these two teams. I will say I think this is the best I’ve felt about Toronto going into a playoff series in some time in terms of preparedness, but until I see Toronto exorcise this demon, I think it’s going to linger with this team. Give me Boston.