Two of the top teams in the NHL are set to collide tonight from Amalie Arena, with the Tampa Bay Lightning playing host to the Vegas Golden Knights.
All Odds Courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook
Vegas Golden Knights (+146) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (-178) Total: 6.5 (O+104, U-128)It certainly hasn’t been a great stretch of play recently from the Tampa Bay Lightning. There are questions about how motivated they are to finish the regular season, knowing very well the importance of saving energy for the right time of year. On the other hand, the Golden Knights are clearly set on capturing the Pacific division and the top seed in the Western Conference, meaning there’s more at stake for them in this matchup.
The Lightning are listed as home favorites tonight on the moneyline at -178, while the Golden Knights are priced at +146. Vegas has been playing some outstanding hockey of late, posting a 6-2-2 record over their past ten games. Things haven’t been going so easily for the Lightning, who sit at 3-5-2 over that same sample size.
Looking towards the projected goalie matchup tonight, the Golden Knights are expected to start Jonathan Quick between the pipes, while the Lightning should counter with Andrei Vasilevskiy. The Golden Knights netminder has posted a 12-13-4 record, paired with a .877 save percentage, while Vasilevskiy is sitting at 29-16-3, with a .916 save percentage. Tampa Bay should have a sizable edge in net, but you have to factor in that Vegas is simply playing better hockey right now.
Vegas is a strong competitor out West, and they’re starting to show us what they’re really capable of in the second half of the regular season. This great defensive team knows how to get offensive contributions at the right time, and that’s exactly what we expect tonight, meaning we’ll be happy to side with the plus-money value of the visitors on the moneyline at +146.
Best Bet: Golden Knights moneyline (+146)
This will be the second matchup between these clubs, which initially saw them combine for nine goals in a Vegas victory just three weeks ago. The total for tonight is 6.5, with the over priced at +104, while the under is juiced up to -128. Over the Golden Knights past five games, they’ve seen seven or more goals scored in two, while the Lightning have seen that transpire in three contests. With some question marks about the Golden Knights goalie and the high-scoring matchup we already saw between these clubs, there’s some value in backing the over 6.5 at +104.
Best Bet: Over 6.5 (+104)
There’s a lot of scoring depth on this Golden Knights squad, even if their biggest strength resides in their defensive prowess. There have been some offensive standouts of late for Vegas, and the biggest one is Jack Eichel, who leads the team with three goals and three assists over their past five games. With some inconsistencies of late from Vasilevskiy in goal and the Lightning in general, this is a great spot to look for Eichel to continue his hot stretch of play. As a result, targeting the big center to find the back of the net has some really nice value tonight at +172.
Best Prop: Jack Eichel to Record Over 0.5 Goals (+172)
