Lightning vs. Oilers Pick
Can the Tampa Bay Lightning secure another road win tonight when they battle the Edmonton Oilers at 9PM ET?
According to oddsmakers at YouWager, the Lightning are a -130 favorite to win on the moneyline. The Oilers are a +110 underdog, while the total is set at 6 goals. As of Monday afternoon, 72 percent of public bets have sided with visiting Tampa Bay.
Tampa Bay comes in with a 36-13-1-2 record after a 4-2 victory Saturday at the Canucks. Edmonton is 22-24-3-1 following a 4-3 home overtime loss Thursday against the Avalanche. This is the first meeting this season between the two squads. Last season, the series was split 1-1 with each team winning on their home ice. The under went 2-0.
The Lightning were led by four players – Cory Conacher, Yanni Gourde, Victor Hedman and Chris Kunitz – with one goal apiece in the win at Vancouver. Nikita Kucherov dished out two assists. Andrei Vasilevskiy registered 31 saves on 33 shots to notch the victory between the pipes. Tampa Bay led 3-0 through two periods and fought off a Canucks comeback in the third after it became a 3-2 game.
In the loss to Colorado, Connor McDavid highlighted the effort with two goals. Drake Caggiula scored the other goal. Leon Draisaitl accounted for two assists. Al Montoya made 27 saves on 31 shots to suffer the defeat. After trailing 3-1 through two periods, goals by Caggiula and McDavid in the third evened the score. McDavid’s came with 28 seconds left in regulation before the eventual OT loss.
The home team is 9-1 in the last 10 meetings. The under is 5-1 in the last six meetings. Tampa Bay is 1-5 in its last six meetings in Edmonton.
Edmonton is more well-rested as it hasn’t played until Thursday, while the Lightning are in the final game of an eight-game road trip that has seen them go 5-2 thus far. Expect Tampa Bay to have a bit of a letdown here as it is a team thinking about being home. Edmonton is capable of a dangerous offense when McDavid is in top form, although it’s been very inconsistent this season. Expect the Oilers to rise to the challenge of facing a team as strong as the Lightning. I like the home underdogs here.
NHL DAILY PREDICTION: EDMONTON OILERS +110