The Tampa Bay Lightning and the Florida Panthers meet Saturday in NHL action from the Amerant Bank Arena. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Panthers vs Lightning Prediction.
Matchup History
These two teams have split the two regular-season meetings so far this year, with the road team winning both legs of a back-to-back. The Panthers won in Tampa Bay on December 22nd, 2024, by a final score of 4-2. The Lightning exacted their revenge the next day on December 23rd, 2024 by a final score of 5-2. 4-0.
Tampa Bay Lightning Recap
The Tampa Bay Lightning come into this game looking to add on to their 3-1 win over the Washington Capitals last time out to sit at 35-20-4 on the year. After this game, Tampa Bay will head home for a matchup with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Lightning Win 8th In A Row
Nikita Kucherov leads the Bolts with 87 points including a team-high 27 goals and 60 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 61 points with 31 goals and 30 assists while Victor Hedman has 47 points with 38 assists. Jake Guentzel also has 56 points with 27 goals and 29 assists. Andrei Vasilevskiy has gone 29-15-3 with a 2.18 GAA and a .923 save percentage while Jonas Johansson has gone 6-5-1 with a 3.24 GAA and an .892 save percentage on the year in goal for Tampa Bay.
Why the Tampa Bay Lightning will win
- The Lightning have won each of their last eight games.
- The Panthers have lost four of their last five games as favorites against Atlantic Division opponents.
- The underdogs have covered the puck line in nine of the Lightning’s last 10 games at Amerant Bank Arena.
- The Panthers have failed to cover the puck line in four of their last five games against Atlantic Division opponents.
Tampa Bay Lightning Player Prop Facts
- Brandon Hagel has scored at least one goal in seven of the Lightning’s last eight games.
- Nick Paul has recorded at least one point in each of his last nine appearances with the Lightning as underdogs against Eastern Conference opponents.
- Nikita Kucherov has recorded at least one assist in nine of his last 10 appearances with the Lightning as road underdogs against the Panthers.
- Nikita Kucherov ranks 1st in the league for multi-assist games (18) this season.
Florida Panthers Recap
The Florida Panthers come into this game looking to add on to their 3-0 win over the Calgary Flames last time out to sit at 37-21-3 on the year. After this game, Florida will meet the Blue Jackets and Sabres.
Panthers Win Three Straight & 8 Of Last 10
Sam Reinhart has a team-high 64 points including 31 goals and 33 assists while Sam Bennett has 39 points with 19 goals and 20 assists and Anton Lundell has 40 points of his own with 14 goals and 26 assists. Aleksander Barkov also has 54 points with 40 assists of his own while Carter Verhaeghe has 44 points with 16 goals and 28 assists and Matthew Tkachuk has 57 points with 22 goals and 35 assists. Sergei Bobrovsky is 25-13-2 with a 2.59 GAA and a .904 save percentage in goal for Florida this season.
Why the Florida Panthers will win
- The Panthers have won seven of their last eight games at Amerant Bank Arena.
- The Lightning have lost seven of their last nine road games against opponents on a winning streak.
- The favorites have covered the puck line in each of the Lightning’s last seven games.
- The Lightning have failed to cover the puck line in five of their last six night games against Eastern Conference opponents.
Florida Panthers Player Prop Facts
- Matthew Tkachuk has recorded at least one point in each of his last eight appearances with the Panthers as favorites.
- Matthew Tkachuk has recorded at least one assist in nine of his last 10 home appearances against the Lightning.
- Matthew Tkachuk has scored at least one goal in each of his last seven appearances with the Panthers as favorites.
- Aleksander Barkov ranks T1st in the league for shootout goals (3) this season.
Total Goals Facts
- Nine of the Panthers’ last 10 games against opponents on a winning streak have gone OVER the total goals line.
- Eight of the last nine games between two teams from the Atlantic Division have gone OVER the total goals line.
- Each of the Lightning’s last five games against the Panthers following a road win has gone UNDER the total goals line.
Panthers vs Lightning Prediction
I’m on the Lightning here. This should be an interesting matchup between two of the better teams in the Eastern Conference. That being said, I said when this was on the card that I’d take plus money whichever side it was on. It doesn’t hurt that it’s on the hotter team in Tampa Bay with 8 straight wins, and the road team has already had a strong showing in this matchup already this season. I think it’s worth taking a shot on the plus money here so give me the Bolts in this one.