Two of the best teams in the NHL face off tonight in Carolina as the 39-16-6 Tampa Bay Lightning look to pick up some momentum towards the end of the season and claim a top spot in the Atlantic Division on rivals Florida Panthers. Here is all you need to know for your NHL picks.
Carolina is sitting top of the Metropolitan Division but is currently on a 0-4 winless streak. Both teams will be desperate to win tonight’s matchup. Carolina won 2-1 in overtime last time these teams met.
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Carolina Hurricanes
Tuesday, March 22, 2022 – 07:00 PM EDT at PNC Arena
Tampa Bay Slightly Faltering
The Lighting has gone 5-5 in their previous 10 games and only won two of their previous 6 games. Nonetheless, we still believe they have a genuine chance of picking up a 3rd Stanley Cup in a row. Their goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy is putting up an impressive 2.36 goals against, and has the most goaltender wins in the league, currently sitting at 32.
On the other end of the ice, the Lighting has been averaging 3.36 goals per game, and Nikita Kucherov, Steven Stamkos, and Victor Hedman have all been putting up an average of over one point per game.
Join Now: $1,000 BMR 12-Week All Sports Challenge
Tampa Bay is prone to going through this cold streak. In fact, all teams are, just look at Carolina right now on their biggest winless streak of the season. We believe this is nothing to be worried about and the Lighting are still in a fight to go top of their division.
Carolina Is Double Trouble
The Hurricanes are no joke, they have a very formidable defense. In fact, it’s the best in the entire league right now having allowed just 2.37 goals per game, and can also boast having an 89% penalty kill, the best in the NHL.
They are the only team in the league to see both their goaltenders sitting inside the top 15 goaltenders in the league based on overall stats this season. Number 1 netminder Frederik Andersen is having his best season to date.
Offensively, the Hurricanes have been putting up 3.26 goals per game, the 12th best this season. Despite going 0-4 in the previous few games they have put up 42 more shots than their opponents in those four games and when your shooting that much more than the opposition, it really only comes down to the way the puck is dropping.
Get Involved: BMR Community
Just like Tampa Bay, this is just a small cold streak and they will be back to their best and ready for the playoffs in the coming weeks.
Team Trends
*Trends should never be your main source of information when it comes to making your betting picks, they are merely guidelines and mostly irrelevant information but nonetheless can be interesting to read.
Tampa Bay Lightning
- Tampa Bay is 5-2 in their last 7 games against an opponent in the Eastern Conference.
- The total has gone under in 4 of Tampa Bay's last 5 games on the road.
- Tampa Bay is 4-1 in their last 5 games when playing on the road against Carolina.
Carolina Hurricanes
- The total has gone under in 7 of Carolina's last 9 games.
- Carolina is 1-4 in their last 5 games when playing at home against Tampa Bay.
- Carolina is 1-4 in their last 5 games against an opponent in the Eastern Conference.
What Are the Betting Odds and Current Lines?
Moneyline: Tampa Bay comes into this contest as slight road underdogs at +102 with Everygame (visit our Everygame Review). The current moneyline odds on the Canes are -115.
Total: Tonight’s total is best priced up at BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review), with the current line sitting at 5.5 it's juiced to -125 for the over and +105 to take the total under.
Puck Line: Tampa Bay to cover the +1.5 PK line is very low NHL odds at -245, whilst the Canes to win by two or more goals is currently +200.
Betting Predictions
It’s a big game here for both teams, the Lightning is trying to get out of a cold patch, whilst the Hurricanes are simply trying to just win a game, both teams have some very strong number 1 goaltenders and we expect both Vasilevskiy and Andersen to start in the crease tonight.
The Hurricanes know they need to tighten the ship having allowed 12 goals in their previous 4 games, which is above their seasonal average by 0.63 per game, it’s the only way to win tonight’s game as a shootout would most likely favor the Lighting. Plus they need to get back to their roots defensively.
We very much like the fact we are getting plus money for the under 5.5 in tonight’s game. We have two top teams, with strong defenses and goaltenders. Carolina has seen just 13 of their 31 home games go over 5.5 goals this season and just 2 of the previous 10 meetings between these teams have witnessed over 5.5 goals.
Score Prediction: Lighting 2-3 Hurricanes
NHL Pick: Andrei Vasilevskiy Total Saves Over 29.5 (+100) at the Best Sportsbooks
NHL Pick: Under 5.5 Goals (+105) at BetOnline
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.
