Our Buffalo Sabres vs Toronto Maple Leafs preview covers the odds, puck line, total, start time, TV channel and where to watch on Thursday, October 15, 2026. The Buffalo Sabres (3-3-1 this season; 50-23-9 in 2025-26) visit the Toronto Maple Leafs (3-3-1 this season; 32-36-14 in 2025-26) at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ont. Puck drop is 7:00 PM ET (7:00 PM local). TV: MSG-B / TSN4.
Storyline: Buffalo enters Thursday at 3-3-1 after a 4-3 shootout loss at Montreal (Oct. 13). Toronto enters Thursday at 3-3-1 after a 5-4 loss at Utah (Oct. 13). Buffalo won three of four meetings last season (NHL.com). DraftKings lists Toronto at -118 and Buffalo at -102 on the moneyline, with the total at 6.5.
Buffalo Sabres vs Toronto Maple Leafs Odds, Puck Line & Game Info
| Matchup | Buffalo Sabres @ Toronto Maple Leafs |
|---|---|
| 2026-27 Records | Buffalo Sabres 3-3-1 | Toronto Maple Leafs 3-3-1 |
| 2025-26 Records | Buffalo Sabres 50-23-9 | Toronto Maple Leafs 32-36-14 |
| Head Coaches | BUF: Lindy Ruff (3rd season) | TOR: Jim Hiller (1st season) |
| Puck Line | BUF +1.5 (-245) | TOR -1.5 (+200) |
| Moneyline | Buffalo Sabres: -102 | Toronto Maple Leafs: -118 |
| Total | O/U 6.5 (o-122 / u+102) |
| Venue | Scotiabank Arena (Toronto, Ont.) |
| Date / Time | Thursday, October 15, 2026 — 7:00 PM ET |
| TV / How to Watch | MSG-B / TSN4 |
| Probable Starting Goalies | BUF: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (probable, per ESPN; not confirmed) | TOR: Sergei Bobrovsky (probable, per ESPN; not confirmed) |
Odds via DraftKings (through ESPN) as of Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2026, ~6:23 PM ET. Lines move, so check your sportsbook before puck drop. ESPN lists Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (Buffalo) and Sergei Bobrovsky (Toronto) as probable starters, not yet confirmed at research time.
Buffalo Sabres Preview: Thompson Leads a 3-3-1 Start
2025-26 recap: Buffalo went 50-23-9 (109 points), won the Atlantic Division, beat Boston in six games in the first round and lost to Montreal in seven games in the second round. Tage Thompson led the team with 81 points (40 goals, 41 assists), Rasmus Dahlin had 74 points, Alex Tuch scored 33 goals and Ryan McLeod had 54 points (NHL.com).
Offseason moves: Buffalo added defensemen Matt Grzelcyk and Louis Crevier from Chicago and Olen Zellweger from Anaheim. Tuch now plays for Washington, and defenseman Bowen Byram (42 points) now plays for Chicago (NHL.com).
Key players & coach: Thompson, Jack Quinn, Josh Doan, McLeod, Josh Norris, Zach Benson, Jiri Kulich, Noah Ostlund and Konsta Helenius lead the forwards. Dahlin, Owen Power, Mattias Samuelsson, Crevier, Zellweger are on defense. Lindy Ruff is in his third season as coach.
Goalies: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has started four games and is 2-2-1 with an .850 save percentage (91 saves on 107 shots, including relief). Most recently, he made 35 saves on 38 shots in a 4-3 shootout loss at Montreal (Oct. 13). Colten Ellis has started three games and is 1-1-0 with an .864 save percentage (51 saves on 59 shots). Most recently, he made 7 saves on 9 shots in a 5-3 win over Florida (Oct. 12). ESPN lists Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen as the probable starter for Thursday (not confirmed at research time).
Season so far: Buffalo is 3-3-1 through seven games, with 19 goals scored and 26 allowed. Results: a 6-3 loss at Columbus (Oct. 1), a 4-3 win over Chicago (Oct. 3), a 3-2 overtime win over Minnesota (Oct. 6), a 4-0 loss to Dallas (Oct. 8), a 4-1 loss to Utah (Oct. 10), a 5-3 win over Florida (Oct. 12) and a 4-3 shootout loss at Montreal (Oct. 13). Tage Thompson has seven points (four goals, three assists), and Owen Power has seven points (one goal, six assists) (NHL.com).
Injuries: Rasmus Dahlin (upper body) is day to day; Matt Grzelcyk (lower body), Jason Zucker (abdomen surgery), Alex Lyon (upper body) and Conor Timmins (lower body) are on injured reserve; Topias Leinonen (lower body) and Jack Rathbone (undisclosed) are on the injured non-roster list (ESPN).
Toronto Maple Leafs Preview: Matthews Leads a 3-3-1 Start
2025-26 recap: Toronto went 32-36-14 (78 points), finished last in the Atlantic Division and missed the playoffs. William Nylander led the team with 79 points (30 goals, 49 assists) in 65 games, John Tavares scored a team-high 31 goals and had 71 points, Matthew Knies had 66 points and Matthews had 27 goals in 60 games (NHL.com).
Offseason moves: Jim Hiller replaced Craig Berube as coach. Toronto selected forward Gavin McKenna No. 1 in the 2026 draft and added forward Kirill Marchenko (67 points for Columbus), defenseman Darren Raddysh (70 points for Tampa Bay), goalie Sergei Bobrovsky from Florida, forwards Colton Sissons, Jack Roslovic, Nick Paul, Teddy Blueger and Brandon Duhaime, and defenseman Nick Blankenburg. Knies now plays for Columbus, and Joseph Woll (Philadelphia), Dennis Hildeby (Tampa Bay), Nick Robertson (Pittsburgh) and Matias Maccelli (Islanders) are also gone (NHL.com).
Key players & coach: Matthews, Nylander, Tavares, Marchenko, Easton Cowan, McKenna, Sissons and Roslovic lead the forwards. Morgan Rielly, Raddysh, Jake McCabe, Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Troy Stecher are on defense. Hiller, who began last season as coach in Los Angeles, is in his first season behind the Toronto bench.
Goalies: Sergei Bobrovsky has started four games and is 1-2-1 with a .907 save percentage (117 saves on 129 shots). Most recently, he made 30 saves on 33 shots in a 6-3 win at Colorado (Oct. 10). Anthony Stolarz has started three games and is 2-1-0 with an .875 save percentage (70 saves on 80 shots). Most recently, he made 23 saves on 28 shots in a 5-4 loss at Utah (Oct. 13). ESPN lists Sergei Bobrovsky as the probable starter for Thursday (not confirmed at research time).
Season so far: Toronto is 3-3-1 through seven games, with 24 goals scored and 23 allowed. Results: a 3-2 loss to Montreal (Sept. 29), a 2-1 win over the Islanders (Sept. 30), a 3-2 loss to Ottawa (Oct. 3), a 5-4 overtime win over Nashville (Oct. 6), a 4-3 shootout loss at Vegas (Oct. 8), a 6-3 win at Colorado (Oct. 10) and a 5-4 loss at Utah (Oct. 13). Auston Matthews has 12 points (five goals, seven assists), and William Nylander has 12 points (five goals, seven assists) (NHL.com).
Injuries: Chris Tanev (upper body) and Elvis Merzlikins (shoulder surgery) are on injured reserve; Dakota Joshua (abdomen), Max Domi (back surgery), Cade Webber (elbow) and William Villeneuve (knee surgery) are on the injured non-roster list (ESPN).
Key Matchup Notes: Sabres vs Maple Leafs
- Schedule spot: Buffalo last played on Oct. 13 and visits Montreal on Oct. 17. Toronto last played on Oct. 13 and hosts the Islanders on Oct. 17.
- Last season: Buffalo won three of four meetings last season. Buffalo won 5-3 at home on Oct. 24, 2025, 7-4 in Toronto on Jan. 27, 2026 and 3-2 in a shootout at home on March 14. Toronto won 4-3 in overtime at home on Oct. 25, 2025 (NHL.com).
- Special teams: Buffalo is converting 11.1 percent of its power plays and has killed 60.9 percent of penalties. Toronto is converting 29.2 percent of its power plays and has killed 95.8 percent of penalties (NHL.com).
- Scoring: Buffalo has scored 19 goals and allowed 26 in 7 games. Toronto has scored 24 goals and allowed 23 in 7 games.
- Odds snapshot: Toronto -118 / Buffalo -102 on the moneyline, Maple Leafs -1.5 (+200) on the puck line, total 6.5 (DraftKings).
How to Watch Buffalo Sabres vs Toronto Maple Leafs
Date: Thursday, October 15, 2026
Puck drop: 7:00 PM ET (7:00 PM local)
Venue: Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, Ont.
TV: In the U.S., MSG-B carries it in the Sabres’ market (NHL.com). In Canada, TSN4 carries it (NHL.com). ESPN also lists ESPN+ streaming. No U.S. national TV broadcast is listed at research time.
Check the puck line, moneyline and total above against your sportsbook before the October 15, 2026 puck drop, and look for confirmed starting goalies closer to game time.