The Vegas Golden Knights and the Tampa Bay Lightning meet in NHL action from the Amalie Arena on Thursday night. Two of the NHL’s best go head-to-head, who comes out on top? Let’s dive in and find out with our Golden Knights vs. Lightning Prediction.
Vegas Golden Knights Team Preview
The Vegas Golden Knights come into this one looking to bounce back from a 6-3 loss to Carolina last time out. Jack Eichel leads the Golden Knights in scoring with 37 points including 15 goals and a team-high 22 assists while William Karlsson has 29 points with 14 goals. Mark Stone has 33 points with 23 assists and Jonathan Marchessault also has 24 points with a team-high 15 goals of his own this season. Adin Hill has gone 10-2-2 with a 1.87 GAA and a .935 save percentage while Logan Thompson has gone 10-5-3 with a 2.71 GAA and a .905 save percentage this season.
Vegas Golden Knights Team Facts
- The Golden Knights have won five of their last six games against Atlantic Division opponents.
- The Golden Knights have failed to cover the puck line in each of their last five games as favorites following a road loss.
- The Golden Knights have won the second period in each of their last seven Thursday games as favorites.
- The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 2′ market has hit in each of the Golden Knights’ last eight games as favorites against Atlantic Division opponents.
Tampa Bay Lightning Team Preview
The Tampa Bay Lightning come into this game looking to build on their 6-1 win over St. Louis last time out. Nikita Kucherov leads the Lightning in scoring with 54 points including a team-high 22 goals and 32 assists while Brayden Point has 14 goals and 21 assists for his 35 points. Victor Hedman’s added 29 points with 24 assists while Steven Stamkos has 34 points with 19 assists and Brandon Hagel has 28 points split between 10 goals and 18 assists. Jonas Johansson has gone 8-6-5 with a 3.47 GAA and an .891 save percentage while Andrei Vasilevskiy is 6-5 with a 2.83 GAA and an .904 save percentage this season.
Tampa Bay Lightning Team Facts
- The underdogs have won each of the last five games between the Golden Knights and Lightning.
- The home team has covered the puck line in eight of the Lightning’s last nine games.
- The home team has won the second period in each of the Lightning’s last seven games.
- The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 1’ market has hit in nine of the Lightning’s last 10 games following a home win.
Matchup/League Facts
- The Tampa Bay Lightning rank 3rd in the league in power play percentage this season (30.19%).
- The Tampa Bay Lightning rank 28th in the league for goals against per game this season (3.48).
- The Vegas Golden Knights are one of four teams to rank in the top 10 for both goals scored and goals conceded per game this season.
- The Vegas Golden Knights rank 6th in the league for goals against per game this season (2.61).
Golden Knights vs. Lightning Prediction
I’m on Vegas here. I know Tampa Bay usually plays their best hockey at home, but we’re getting a favorable price with the defending Stanley Cup champions, which is going to be a rarity this season in its own right against a Tampa Bay team that is still wildly inconsistent. I think this is going to be an awesome game, but I’ll side with what I feel is the value with Vegas in this one.
