PNC Arena plays host to an intriguing showdown as the Tampa Bay Lightning square off against the Carolina Hurricanes. It’s the third and last time that the two clubs will meet in the regular season. This Eastern Conference matchup will get going at 5 p.m. ET on Sunday, January 5 and it is being televised live on Fox Sports Sun.
Tampa Bay Lightning at Carolina Hurricanes Odds
Losing 0.9 units for moneyline gamblers, the Hurricanes are 24-17 straight up (SU) overall this year. That early-season winning percentage is right in line with what the team managed during last year’s regular season (46-36). Of its 41 regular season outings, 21 have gone under the total, while 20 have gone over and none have pushed. The team is 12-7 SU at home this season.
Carolina has connected on 24.2 percent of its power play opportunities this year, a figure that places them in the top-5 among NHL teams. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 13th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 81.3 percent of all penalties.
Carolina, as a collective unit, has been called for penalties 4.1 times per game overall this season, 4.0 per game over its past five contests total, and 4.4 per game over its last five home outings. The team has had to kill penalties for just 8.4 minutes per game over its last five matchups, overall.
With a .901 save percentage and 24.3 saves per game, Petr Mrazek (16-11-2) has been the principal goalkeeper for the Hurricanes this season. If head coach Rod Brind Amour chooses to give him a breather, however, the team could turn to James Reimer (8-8-8 record, .914 save percentage, 2.69 goals against average).
The Canes will continue seeking leadership out of Teuvo Teravainen and Andrei Svechnikov. Teravainen (41 points) has tallied eight goals and 33 assists and has recorded multiple points on nine different occasions this year. Svechnikov has 17 goals and 23 assists to his credit and has recorded a point in 25 games.
Tampa Bay is 23-17 straight up (SU) and has lost 5.5 units for moneyline bettors this year. A total of 23 of its contests have gone over the total, while 15 have gone under the total and just one has pushed. As the visiting team so far, Tampa Bay is 11-8 SU.
Tampa Bay comes into the matchup with the third-strongest power-play unit in the NHL, as it’s found the net on 29.0 percent of its extra-man chances this year. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 13th overall and it’s successfully defended 81.4 percent of all opponent power plays.
Tampa Bay’s skaters have been penalized 4.1 times per game this season, and 5.0 per game over their last five road outings. The team’s had to stave off opponent power plays 8.5 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Andrei Vasilevskiy (.909 save percentage and 2.83 goals against average) has been the main option in goal for Tampa Bay. Vasilevskiy is averaging 28.3 saves per game and has 18 wins, 11 losses, and two OT losses to his credit.
Nikita Kucherov (14 goals, 29 assists) has been one of the primary offensive playmakers for the visiting Lightning.
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Carolina Hurricanes Betting Predictions
NHL Prediction: SU Winner – Lightning, O/U – Over
Betting Trends
- For both of these teams, the game went over the total in four of their past five outings.
- Tampa Bay has managed 30.6 shot attempts per game over its last five road games while Carolina is averaging 38.0 shots per game over its last five at home.
- The extra-man advantage may play a critical role in this game. The Lightning are 9-7 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 12-9 when they serve fewer than 10 total penalty minutes. The Hurricanes are 7-4 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 13-10 in games where they’re in the box for less than 10 minutes.
- One of the best teams when it comes to disrupting opposing teams, Carolina is ranked 2nd overall with 9.4 takeaways per game. That figure’s trended upward lately, as the team has averaged 10.3 takeaways over its last 10 games and 13.6 takeaways over its last five.
- Tampa Bay has allowed just 4.3 goals per game (while scoring 2.3 per contest) in their past six games (the team’s a perfect 6-0 SU over that streak)
- Tampa Bay is ranked 20th overall with 7.2 takeaways per game. That figure has trended lower lately, however, as it has forced 6.5 takeaways over its last 10 games and 6.2 takeaways over its last five.
