The Tampa Bay Lightning and the Chicago Blackhawks meet Friday in NHL action from the United Center. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Chicago Blackhawks prediction.
Tampa Bay Lightning Recap
The Tampa Bay Lightning come into this game looking to build on their 4-1 win over San Jose last time out to sit at 31-13-4 this season. After this game, Tampa Bay will head on the road for a game against Columbus.
Lightning Win 9 Of Last 10
Nikita Kucherov leads the Lightning in scoring with 73 points including 24 goals and 49 assists while Brandon Hagel has 46 points with 25 goals and 21 assists and Jake Guentzel has 51 points with 22 goals and 29 assists. Anthony Cirelli has 30 points with 13 goals and 17 assists. Darren Raddysh has also added 42 points with 12 goals and 30 assists as well on the year. Andrei Vasilevskiy has gone 21-7-3 with a 2.18 GAA and a .917 save percentage while Jonas Johansson is 10-6-1 with a 2.73 GAA and an .896 save percentage this season.
Why the Tampa Bay Lightning will win
- The Lightning have won each of their last eight games following a home win.
- The Blackhawks have lost each of their last six games against Atlantic Division opponents.
- The Lightning have covered the puck line in each of their last seven games against the Blackhawks following a home win.
- The Blackhawks have failed to cover the puck line in five of their last six games against Atlantic Division opponents.
Tampa Bay Lightning Player Prop Facts
- Nick Paul has scored a goal in each of the Lightning’s last four road games against opponents who are playing on the second leg of a back-to-back.
- Nikita Kucherov has recorded at least one assist in each of the Lightning’s last 10 games as road favorites against Central Division opponents.
- Nikita Kucherov ranks 2nd in the league for Assists (49) this season.
Chicago Blackhawks Recap
The Chicago Blackhawks come into this game looking to add on to their 4-3 shootout win over Carolina last time out to sit at 21-22-7 this season. After this game, Chicago will take on Florida at home.
Blackhawks Win Back-To-Back Games
Connor Bedard leads the Blackhawks with 48 points including a team-high 20 goals and 28 assists while Frank Nazar has 21 points with 6 goals and 15 assists. Teuvo Teravainen has 21 points with 12 assists while Ryan Donato has 20 points with 10 goals of his own. Andre Burakovsky has 30 points with 10 goals and Tyler Bertuzzi has 38 points with 24 goals and 14 assists. Spencer Knight has gone 15-13-6 with a 2.54 GAA and a .913 save percentage while Arvid Soderblom has gone 5-8-1 with a 3.97 GAA and an .868 save percentage so far this season in goal for Chicago.
Why the Chicago Blackhawks will win
- The Blackhawks have won six of their last seven games as underdogs after coming off a shootout.
- The Lightning have lost three of their last four games as road favorites against opponents on a winning streak.
- The Blackhawks have covered the puck line in 10 of their last 11 night games against opponents on a winning streak.
- The Lightning have failed to cover the puck line in five of their last six games as road favorites against opponents on a winning streak.
Chicago Blackhawks Player Prop Facts
- Tyler Bertuzzi has scored at least one goal in five of the Blackhawks’ last six games on the second leg of a back-to-back.
- Connor Bedard has recorded at least one assist in each of his last six appearances after playing the previous day.
- Ryan Donato has scored two goals against the Lightning this season – most against any opponent.
Total Goals Facts
- Each of the Lightning’s last seven games against Central Division opponents have gone UNDER the total goals line.
- Seven of the Blackhawks’ last eight home games against opponents on a winning streak have gone OVER the total goals line.
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Chicago Blackhawks Prediction
I’m on the Lightning here. I get the case to be made for Chicago catching a healthy amount of plus money at home, but at the end of the day, I still think that the Lightning are the far better team and more proven team, and the Lightning have also been better on the road surprisingly this season. Chicago is still a better team than they’ve been the last couple of years, but I think there’s still some work to do before hanging with the Lightning. Give me the Lightning.