Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point, and the Tampa Bay Lightning are set to do battle against Brent Burns, Logan Couture, and the San Jose Sharks at the SAP Center in an East-West matchup. The match gets going at 11 p.m. ET on Saturday, January 5 and it’s being televised live on NBC Sports California.
Tampa Bay Lightning at San Jose Sharks Odds
The Lightning (-115) are tabbed as the favorites over the Sharks (-105) and oddsmakers have put the Over/Under (O/U) at 7 goals (-115 for the over, -105 for the under).
Tampa Bay is 32-9 straight up (SU) and has earned 16.3 units for moneyline bettors this year. 24 of its contests have gone over the total, while 15 have gone under and just two have pushed. This 2018-19 Lightning team is 15-5 SU on the road.
Tampa Bay currently touts the first-best power-play unit in the NHL, as it’s converted on 30.5 percent of its extra-man opportunities this year. Its penalty kill is ranked ninth overall, and it’s successfully killed off 82.8 percent of all penalties..
Averaging 31.0 saves per game with a .924 save percentage, Andrei Vasilevskiy (16-5-2) has been the best option in goal for Tampa Bay this year. If it chooses to give him a rest, however, Tampa Bay might roll with Louis Domingue (15-4), who has a .904 save percentage and 2.99 goals against average this year.
San Jose is 22-20 straight up (SU) and has lost 8.9 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 42 regular season contests, 25 of its games have gone over the total, while 16 have gone under and just one has pushed. This year, the team’s 12-8 SU at home.
The Sharks have converted on 24.8 percent of their power play chances this year, a figure that places it in the top-10 among NHL teams. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked sixth overall, and it’s successfully killed off 83.6 percent of all penalties.
Martin Jones has stopped 24.7 shots per game as the top netminder in goal for the Sharks. Jones has 18 wins, 12 losses, and four overtime losses and has recorded a mediocre 2.91 goals against average and a subpar .897 save percentage this year.
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. San Jose Sharks Betting Predictions
Prediction: SU Winner – Sharks, O/U – Over
Betting Trends
- Six of San Jose’s last ten games have been decided by two or more goals. The team is 4-2 overall in those games.
- The Lightning are 11-6 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 15-9 in games where they’re in the penalty box for fewer than 10 minutes, total.
- Tampa Bay is 3-0 in games decided by a shootout this season while San Jose is 0-3 in shootouts.
- Tampa Bay might hold an advantage if this one comes down to the wire. The team’s an impressive 14-4 in one-goal games, while San Jose is 8-10 in such games.
- For both of these clubs, the total has gone over in four of their last five outings.
- Tampa Bay is ranked eighth this season with 8.4 giveaways per game. That figure has trended higher, as the team’s averaged 10.0 giveaways over its last 10 games and 9.6 giveaways over its last five.
- San Jose is ranked 15th this season with 9.6 giveaways per game. That figure has regressed, as it’s averaged 10.9 giveaways over its last 10 games and 11.4 giveaways over its last five.
- Tampa Bay skaters have accounted for the league’s ninth-most hits per game (24.1).
