Pittsburgh Penguins (30-21-9) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (37-19-4)
March 2, 2023 7:00 pm EDT
The Line: Tampa Bay Lightning -169 / Pittsburgh Penguins +135; Over/Under: +6.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Pittsburgh Penguins and Tampa Bay Lightning meet Thursday in NHL action at the Amalie Arena. Let’s preview this game and give out a pick and prediction.
The Pittsburgh Penguins Betting Preview
The Pittsburgh Penguins are averaging 3.2 goals per game and are scoring on 21.7 percent of their power play opportunities. Sidney Crosby leads Pittsburgh with 27 goals, Evgeni Malkin has 39 assists, and Rickard Rakell has 181 shots on goal. Defensively, the Pittsburgh Penguins are allowing 3.2 goals per game and are killing 79.9 percent of their opponent’s power plays. Tristan Jarry has allowed 82 goals on 998 shots faced, and Casey DeSmith has given up 87 goals on 908 shots.
The Tampa Bay Lightning Betting Preview
The Tampa Bay Lightning are averaging 3.6 goals per game and are scoring on 25.7 percent of their power play opportunities. Brayden Point leads Tampa Bay with 37 goals, Nikita Kucherov has 63 assists and Steven Stamkos has 199 shots on goal. Defensively, the Tampa Bay Lightning are allowing 2.9 goals per game and are killing 81.2 percent of their opponent’s power plays. Andrei Vasilevskiy has given up 115 goals on 1,416 shots faced, and Brian Elliott has allowed 48 goals on 464 shots.
Penguins vs Lightning Trends
The Penguins are 3-12 in their last 15 vs. Eastern Conference and 0-4 in their last 4 Thursday games. The Lightning are 53-20 in their last 73 home games and 2-5 in their last 7 overall. The under is 4-1 in Penguins last 5 road games. The under is 4-1 in Lightning last 5 games playing on 1 days rest. The Penguins are 2-5 in the last 7 meetings in Tampa Bay and 4-1 in the last 5 meetings. The home team is 11-5 in the last 16 meetings. The favorite is 44-20 in the last 64 meetings.
Randy’s Free Pick
The Pittsburgh Penguins just can’t get out of their own way, and this isn’t one of those games for them to bounce back. The Tampa Bay Lightning are tough to bet against at home, and you know they’ll be up for this after getting waxed by an in-state rival. I’ll lay the juice with the Lightning at home.
