The Toronto Maple Leafs are back in action Thursday looking to build off the momentum of Tuesday's dominant 4-1 win over the Florida Panthers when continuing their road trip in one of the hardest arenas to travel to in Raleigh to take on the Carolina Hurricanes. These two battled it out earlier this season when the Hurricanes prevailed in high-scoring 5-4 result with things only further going in their favor as they return home for this matchup. 

Carolina has the best home team in the NHL for a 154-52-19 record over the last six seasons and will clash against Toronto, who are not looking like their normal selves lately with a 4-7-0 record on the road this season after finishing last season with a 25-13-3 for the best road record in the NHL. It'll be an interesting test for a Leafs team that has won two straight and are still looking to crawl out of their early season hole. 

New to the Pad Stack challenge? Here’s how it works. You start with $10 and aim to grow it with carefully researched bets. Our best run this season took us all the way to $411.47 before a late empty-net goal by the Florida Panthers ended our streak on the Vancouver spread. Tonight we’re back in the game, ready to refocus and chase a new win. We’ve got a confident pick for the marquee matchup that could ignite momentum and set the tone for the week ahead.

All betting lines are from BetMGM Sportsbook and are subject to change. Hockey is a difficult sport to predict so please gamble responsibly. 

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Predators, Flames Emerge As Favorites in Race For NHL’s Worst RecordThe NHL’s race to the bottom is tightening, with Nashville and Calgary leading a crowded field of struggling teams battling to avoid finishing last.

Picks: Hurricanes ML & Over 4.5 Goals (-128)

The public is favoring the Buds in this matchup, with 78 per cent of bettors taking them as underdogs on the puck line and 53 per cent backing them to win outright. The Hurricanes enter the game well-rested in the middle of a long homestand, having not played since last Sunday. Toronto comes off a tough contest against the Panthers, which may allow them to keep this game competitive, but Carolina is expected to come out on top.

The Leafs did manage a win on their last trip to Raleigh, but victories there are rare, as Toronto has only won twice in their last six trips since 2021. While wins are uncommon, high-scoring games are not, with seven or more goals scored in six of the last nine meetings between these teams. Toronto’s struggling defense this season has consistently contributed to high-scoring affairs, with just two of their 26 games totaling fewer than five goals. 

A $10 wager on this same-game parlay would return $7.80, giving us a total of $17.80 to work with heading into the rest of the week.   

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