The Pittsburgh Penguins and the Tampa Bay Lightning meet in NHL action from Amalie Arena on Wednesday night. Can the Penguins win their 6th straight against the Lightning? Or will Tampa Bay strike and get some revenge? Let’s take a look and give out a Penguins vs. Lightning Prediction.
Pittsburgh Penguins Team Preview
The Pittsburgh Penguins come into this game looking to rebound from back-to-back losses to the Philadelphia Flyers after a 2-1 loss to the Flyers last time out. Jake Guentzel leads the Penguins in scoring with 28 points including 9 goals and a team-high 19 assists while Sidney Crosby has 26 points with a team-high 15 goals with 11 assists. Evgeni Malkin has 21 points with 10 goals and 11 assists and Bryan Rust has 20 points split between 10 goals and 10 assists. Erik Karlsson has 19 points with 13 assists as well this season. Tristan Jarry has gone 8-8-2 with a 2.47 GAA and a .918 save percentage while Alex Nedeljkovic has a 2-2-1 record with a 2.18 GAA and a .937 save percentage this season.
Pittsburgh Penguins Team Facts
- The underdogs have won each of the Penguins’ last eight games.
- The underdogs have covered the puck line in each of the Penguins’ last eight games.
- The Penguins have won the second period in each of their last six games against the Lightning after coming off overtime.
- The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 2′ market has hit in each of the Penguins’ last 12 games at Amalie Arena.
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Tampa Bay Lightning Team Preview
The Tampa Bay Lightning come into this game fresh off of a 4-0 revenge win over the Dallas Stars in their last matchup. Nikita Kucherov leads the Lightning in scoring with 42 points including a team-high 16 goals and 26 assists while Brayden Point has 12 goals and 18 assists for his 30 points. Victor Hedman’s added 25 points with 20 assists while Steven Stamkos has 25 points with 15 assists and Brandon Hagel has 23 points split between 10 goals and 13 assists. Jonas Johansson has gone 8-5-5 with a 3.44 GAA and an .892 save percentage while Andrei Vasilevskiy is 2-3 with a 3.03 GAA and an .887 save percentage this season.
Tampa Bay Lightning Team Facts
- The underdogs have won each of the last four games between the Penguins and Lightning at Amalie Arena.
- The underdogs have covered the puck line in seven of the Lightning’s last eight games at Amalie Arena.
- The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 1’ market has hit in each of the Lightning’s last eight games following a home win.
- The home team has won the first period in each of the Lightning’s last six games.
Matchup/League Facts
- The Tampa Bay Lightning ranks 2nd in the league in power play percentage this season (31.03%).
- The Tampa Bay Lightning ranks 28th in the league for goals against per game this season (3.58).
- The Pittsburgh Penguins ranks 30th in the league in power play percentage this season (10.45%).
- The Pittsburgh Penguins ranks 5th in the league for goals against per game this season (2.58).
Penguins vs. Lightning Prediction
I’m on the Penguins here. It was nice for Tampa Bay to get a bounce back win over the Stars after being humiliated the game before, but I’m not ready to just jump back on the Bolts after one win. Pittsburgh’s owned this matchup in past seasons and already has a win over Tampa Bay this season. Give me the Penguins.
