Bruins vs. Lightning Odds
| Bruins Odds | +135 |
| Lightning Odds | -160 |
| Over/Under | 6 |
| Time | 7 p.m. ET |
| TV | NHLN |
| Odds via BetMGM. Get up-to-the-minute NHL odds here. | |
This is a highly-anticipated matchup between two strong teams that are tied in the Atlantic Division standings.
The Tampa Bay Lightning are in funk, losing their last three games, which hasn't happened often to this team that has won back-to-back Stanley Cups. The Lightning are in unfamiliar territory right now as they are in the first wild card position in the standings. A win over Boston would get them into that third spot in the division.
The Boston Bruins are coming off of a very frustrating loss after falling to the Detroit Red Wings, 5-3, even though they outshot them 50-28.
The B's have been trending in the right direction, but in this matchup they will be without their leading scorer David Pastrnak.
Boston Bruins Have Big Hole to Fill Without Pastrnak
The Bruins were completely dominant on Tuesday night in Detroit, they just had a hard time finishing on their scoring chances. Luckily for them, they don't typically need to rely on their offense to win hockey games considering that they are the sixth best defensive team in the league, only allowing 2.69 goals against per game.
Linus Ullmark has already been announced as the starting goaltender for the B's as of late. He is 3-0-0 in his last three starts, only giving up six goals in those games combined. Ullmark is 22-9-2 on the season with a .910 save percentage and a 2.63 goals against average.
Despite the hiccup in Detroit, the Bruins have been playing some excellent hockey lately as they have won seven out of their last 10 games, but the divisional games always matter so much more this time of year.
Boston has taken five out six possible points against the Lightning this season as they are 2-0-1 against the Bolts. The B's dominated the last meeting on March 24, winning 3-2 and outshooting Tampa 39-24.
The B's are hoping to take advantage of a Tampa team that is slumping right now.
Are the Lightning Still the Team to Beat?
Something is going on in Tampa Bay right now because this team has not looked like the two-time defending champions with the way they've been playing lately.
The Lightning have lost three straight games and six out of their last 10. Andrei Vasilevskiy has had a strong season, but in his last two starts he has allowed 10 goals on 67 shots against. It can be foolish to worry about the lightning; it just seems like something is missing.
One thing that Tampa has going for them is that even though they aren't winning consistently, they are still scoring goals. Their opponent tonight is a very good defensive team, so goal scoring won't come easy, but they need to make sure they are getting traffic in front of Ullmark.
The Lightning do a great job at creating scoring chances as they are the fifth best team with 13.19 high-danger chances per 60 minutes, but they're only getting 30.6 shots on goal per game. There's some room for improvement with the amount of shots they are generating and Boston is a team that makes that tough.
Bruins vs. Lightning Pick
Even though the Bruins are without David Pastrnak, I still love the way this team is playing. The loss in Detroit isn't even a concern because the B's were far and away the better team in that game.
The B's have gotten the best of Tampa in the last two meetings and there is a feeling that Tampa is starting to feel some pressure or fatigue heading into the playoffs.
This is going be a very intense, perhaps Game 7 type of atmosphere as this is the final meeting of the regular season between the two.
I really think the way they have been trending that there is incredible value on the Bruins as an underdog, and I like them to steal two points on the road.
Pick: Bruins ML +135
