The Buffalo Sabres and the Tampa Bay Lightning meet Thursday in NHL action from the Amalie Arena. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Lightning vs Sabres Prediction.
Matchup History
These two teams have yet to meet this season, but Buffalo did win the most recent meeting 4-2 back on April 15th, 2024, in Tampa Bay for their 5th win in the last six meetings against the Lightning in this head-to-head matchup.
Buffalo Sabres Recap
The Buffalo Sabres come into this game looking to bounce back after ending up on the wrong side of a 6-2 beatdown loss at the hands of San Jose to slip to 24-30-6 on the year. After this game, Buffalo will head on the road for a game against the Florida Panthers.
Sabres Lose 4th In A Row
Tage Thompson leads the Sabres with 53 points including a team-leading 30 goals along with 23 assists while Alex Tuch is right behind with 47 points including 23 goals and 24 assists. JJ Peterka has 49 points with 18 goals and 31 assists and Rasmus Dahlin has 49 points with 10 goals and 39 assists. Jason Zucker also added 44 points with 18 goals and 26 assists. Devon Levi has gone 2-7 in net for the Sabres with a 4.12 GAA and an .872 save percentage while Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen is 20-18-4 with a 3.06 GAA and an .892 save percentage as well on the year. James Reimer is 2-5-2 with a 2.68 GAA and a .903 save percentage.
Why the Buffalo Sabres will win
- The Sabres have won four of their last five games as underdogs against the Lightning.
- The Sabres have covered the puck line in seven of their last eight games as underdogs against Eastern Conference opponents.
Buffalo Sabres Player Prop Facts
- Alex Tuch has scored a goal in each of the Sabres’ last four road games.
- Rasmus Dahlin has recorded at least one assist in six of the Sabres’ last seven games against the Lightning.
- Jason Zucker has recorded at least one point in each of his last seven appearances with the Sabres as underdogs.
- Ryan McLeod ranks 1st amongst qualified Eastern Conference players for shooting percentage (23.3%) this season.
Tampa Bay Lightning Recap
The Tampa Bay Lightning come into this game looking to add on to their 6-2 win over Columbus last time out to improve to 36-21-4 on the year. After this game, Tampa Bay will welcome the Boston Bruins to town.
Lightning Win 9 Of Last 10
Nikita Kucherov leads the Bolts with 90 points including a team-high 28 goals and 62 assists while Brandon Hagel has 68 points with 30 goals and 38 assists and Anthony Cirelli has 45 points of his own with 25 assists. Brayden Point has 64 points with 32 goals and 32 assists while Victor Hedman has 50 points with 39 assists. Jake Guentzel also has 60 points with 29 goals and 31 assists. Andrei Vasilevskiy has gone 29-16-3 with a 2.18 GAA and a .924 save percentage while Jonas Johansson has gone 7-5-1 with a 3.15 GAA and an .896 save percentage on the year in goal for Tampa Bay.
Why the Tampa Bay Lightning will win
- The favorites have won each of the Lightning’s last 10 games.
- The Sabres have lost each of their last five road games.
- The Lightning have covered the puck line in each of their last nine games.
- The Sabres have failed to cover the puck line in four of their last five games.
Tampa Bay Lightning Player Prop Facts
- Brayden Point has scored a goal in each of the Lightning’s last four games against Atlantic Division opponents.
- Brandon Hagel has recorded at least one point in each of the Lightning’s last 14 Thursday games.
- Nikita Kucherov has recorded at least one assist in each of the Lightning’s last eight Thursday games against Atlantic Division opponents at Amalie Arena.
- Nikita Kucherov ranks 1st in the league for multi-assist games (19) this season.
Total Goals Facts
- Each of the Lightning’s last six night games against the Sabres following a home win have gone OVER the total goals line.
- Nine of the last 11 games between two teams from the Atlantic Division have gone OVER the total goals line.
- Four of the Sabres’ last five games following a loss have gone OVER the total goals line.
Lightning vs Sabres Prediction
I’m on the Lightning in this game. I think that the Lightning are in one of those grooves, and they normally have a couple of these per season where they get rolling and become a team that you don’t want to step in front of. Tampa Bay is currently in that mode right now. And I especially don’t want to get in the way when Buffalo is the alternative. The Sabres can’t stop giving up goals right now and have been especially bad on the road this season. Tampa Bay has been at their best at home by a fair margin and I think they simply steamroll Buffalo here. Give me the Lightning.