Sergei Bobrovsky goes back to Columbus, where he played seven seasons and won both his Vezinas, the night after his best game as a Leaf. Maple Leafs vs Blue Jackets is a 7:00pm ET start at Nationwide Arena on Tuesday 20 October.
How to watch
| Detail | |
|---|---|
| Game | Toronto Maple Leafs at Columbus Blue Jackets |
| Date | Tuesday 20 October 2026 |
| Puck drop | 7:00pm ET |
| Venue | Nationwide Arena |
| Records | Toronto 4-4-2, Columbus 3-4-0 |
Check your provider before puck drop: coverage varies by region and some parts of Canada are blacked out. We keep the full breakdown on our how to watch the NHL in Canada page.
Maple Leafs vs Blue Jackets odds
Moneyline prices from 3 Canadian sportsbooks, captured on 19 October. American odds throughout.
| Sportsbook | Toronto | Columbus |
|---|---|---|
| PlayAlberta | +131 | −154 |
| TonyBet | +120 | −154 |
| theScore Bet | +135 | −155 |
These are stored prices rather than live ones, and a hockey line moves the moment a starting goaltender is confirmed, so check before you bet. Availability varies by province: PlayAlberta is a provincial platform rather than open-market books, and the private sportsbooks operate where they hold a licence. Our NHL betting sites page sets out which operates where, and who is expected in net is on our projected NHL starting goalies page.
Bobrovsky spent seven years here and 374 games
Columbus had him from 2012-13 to 2018-19. He won 41 games in 2016-17 at a .931 with seven shutouts, and put up a .932 in the shortened 2012-13 season. Both of his Vezina Trophies came in this building.
He arrives on the back of 30 saves from 31 shots against San Jose on Monday. That was comfortably his best night since signing in Toronto. That lifted his save percentage to .902 across seven starts.
Toronto won that game 3-1 with Auston Matthews involved in all three goals. It is 4-4-2 and this is the second night of a back-to-back. Anthony Stolarz and his .875 are a live possibility.
How they compare
| 2025-26 | Toronto Maple Leafs | Columbus Blue Jackets |
|---|---|---|
| Record | 32-36-14 | 40-30-12 |
| Points | 78 | 92 |
| Goals for per game | 3.07 | 3.00 |
| Goals against per game | 3.60 | 3.06 |
| Power play | 21.3% | 18.9% |
| Penalty kill | 81.2% | 76.0% |
Columbus finished fourteen points clear of Toronto last season. Both scored 253 goals, but the Leafs conceded 3.60 a game, second only to Vancouver among the ten clubs in tonight’s Canadian games, and Columbus had the weaker power play.
Columbus has scored 18 goals in seven games and has nobody injured
The Blue Jackets are 3-4-0 and the problem is at the front end. Eighteen goals in seven games is the lowest total of any club in tonight’s Canadian games, and they’ve lost three of their last four.
Columbus is the only club playing tonight with an empty injury list. Not one player is listed, which against a Toronto side carrying eight is the single biggest difference between them.
Jet Greaves has four starts at a .907 and Cam Talbot three at a .875. Sunday’s 2-1 defeat in Minnesota was the second straight game in which Columbus scored once.
Two of the last three meetings went to overtime
| Date | Result | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| 26 Nov 2025 | Toronto 2-1 (OT) | Columbus |
| 20 Nov 2025 | Columbus 3-2 (OT) | Toronto |
| 29 Oct 2025 | Columbus 6-3 | Columbus |
| 5 Apr 2025 | Toronto 5-0 | Toronto |
Columbus leads the all-time series 27 wins to 24, and the recent meetings have gone both ways. Toronto won 2-1 in overtime in Columbus in November, six days after losing 3-2 in overtime at home.
The outlier is the 6-3 Columbus win in October 2025. Both November meetings went to overtime and were settled by a single goal.
Team news
| Club | Player | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Toronto | John Tavares | Out, lower body, on injured reserve |
| Toronto | Chris Tanev | Out, upper body, on injured reserve |
| Toronto | Dakota Joshua | Out, abdomen. Week to week |
| Toronto | Max Domi | Out, back. No timetable after summer surgery |
| Toronto | Elvis Merzlikins | Out, shoulder, long term |
| Toronto | Miles Wood | Out, undisclosed, on injured reserve |
| Toronto | Cade Webber | Out, elbow, on injured reserve |
| Toronto | William Villeneuve | Out, knee, on injured reserve |
Who starts in goal is an open question. Toronto has split its starts between Bobrovsky (seven, .902) and Stolarz (three, .875), and Columbus between Greaves (four, .907) and Talbot (three, .875). Neither number is a promise about tonight, and the line moves the moment a club confirms its starter.
The full league picture is on our NHL injury report.
Players to watch
Sergei Bobrovsky, Toronto. Thirty saves on 31 against San Jose on Monday, in the building he is about to return to as a visitor.
Auston Matthews, Toronto. A goal and two assists on Monday, including the power-play goal that tied it with twelve seconds of the second period left.
Jet Greaves, Columbus. A .907 across four starts on a side that has given him 18 goals of support in seven games.
Score prediction
Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 Columbus Blue Jackets. Columbus is healthy and Toronto is not. But 18 goals in seven games is hard to win with, and Toronto has just found something in goal.
Maple Leafs vs Blue Jackets prediction
Toronto is the side we would take, narrowly. Bobrovsky has just had his best game as a Leaf and Matthews is producing. Columbus has scored once in each of its last two.
The case against is real. Toronto is on the second night of a back-to-back with eight players out. Its opponent has nobody on the list at all. Our lean: Toronto, and the under if the total sits at 6 or higher. Two of the last three meetings went to overtime, and Columbus isn’t scoring.
We rank all 32 each week in the NHL power rankings; the NHL schedule has the rest of Tuesday’s games.
Puck drop is 7:00pm ET on Tuesday 20 October 2026 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus.
Yes. He spent seven seasons there from 2012-13 to 2018-19, 374 games, and won both of his Vezina Trophies with the Blue Jackets.
Eight players, including John Tavares, Chris Tanev, Dakota Joshua and Max Domi. Columbus has nobody on its injury list.
Columbus leads the all-time series 27 wins to 24, though Toronto won the most recent meeting 2-1 in overtime.
Toronto to win 3-2, and the under if the total sits at 6 or higher.
19+ (18+ in AB, MB and QC). Picks are opinion, not advice, and odds change constantly. Availability varies by province. Please play responsibly. ConnexOntario: 1-866-531-2600 for Ontario residents; see your province’s helpline for resources elsewhere.