In their third and final head-to-head matchup of the regular season, the Tampa Bay Lightning and the New York Islanders collide at the Barclays Center in an Eastern Conference tilt. The puck drops at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday, March 22, and it’s being shown live on Sportsnet.
Tampa Bay Lightning at New York Islanders Odds
Tampa Bay (-180) is currently favored over New York (+160) and the oddsmakers have set the Over/Under (O/U) at 7 goals (-115 for the over, -105 for the under).
Tampa Bay is 50-23 straight up (SU) and has earned 11.9 units for moneyline bettors this seaso
Tampa Bay enters the match up with the third-best power-play unit in the NHL, as it’s found the net on 24.0 percent of its extra-man advantages this season. Additionally, its penalty kill is ranked 27th in the league, and the team’s successfully killed off only 76.7 percent of its penalties.
The Bolts, as a collective unit, have been penalized 4.0 times per game this season, 4.2 per game over its past five games total, and 4.0 per game over its last five games as the visiting team. The team’s been forced to kill penalties 10.2 minutes per game over their last five road outings.
Sporting a .922 save percentage and 29.4 saves per game, Andrei Vasilevskiy (41-18-3) has been the best option in goal for Tampa Bay this year. If it decides to give him a rest, however, head coach Jon Cooper might turn to Louis Domingue (6-10), who has a .890 save percentage and 3.49 goals against average this year.
The visiting Lightning will be led by Nikita Kucherov and Steven Stamkos. Kucherov has 94 points via 37 goals and 57 assists, and has recorded two or more points in 30 different games. Stamkos has 27 goals and 58 assists to his credit, and has registered a point in 50 games.
On the other side of the rink, New York is 31-42 straight up (SU) and has lost 10.6 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 73 regular season outings, 44 of its games have gone over the total, while 26 have gone under and just three have pushed. This season, the team is 17-18 SU at home.
The Islanders have converted on 21.8 percent of their power play chances this year, a figure that’s good enough for 10th-best in the league. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 31st overall, and it’s successfully killed off 75.0 percent of all penalties.
Islanders players have been whistled for penalties only 3.4 times per game in total this season, and 2.2 per game over their last five at home. The team has been forced to stave off opponent power plays a whopping 13.6 minutes per game over their last five outings.
Jaroslav Halak (29.7 saves per game) has been the top selection in goal for the Islanders. Halak has 18 wins, 32 losses, and six OT losses and has recorded a subpar .906 save percentage and 3.28 goals against average this season.
The Isles will be led on offense by Mathew Barzal (20 goals, 55 assists) and John Tavares (32 goals, 43 assists).
Tampa Bay Lightning at New York Islanders Betting Predictions
NHL Prediction: SU Winner – Lightning, O/U – Under
