At this point in the season, there isn’t much room for error and while tonight’s game against the Lightning wasn’t necessarily a must. Today we will discuss about Lightning vs Oilers: Prediction| Odds| Pick| NHL Odds
Lightning vs Oilers: Prediction| Odds| Pick| NHL Odds
The Tampa Bay Lightning will enter Western Canada tonight as they look to take on the Edmonton Oilers in this cross-conference matchup. This will be the second meeting between the two teams as the Lightning won the first game 5-3 in February. Can Tampa Bay take care of business again tonight? It’s time to continue our NHL odds series with Lightning-Oilers predictions and selections
Prediction
It’s a battle between the two most talented teams in the NHL on Saturday when the Tampa Bay Lightning take on the Edmonton Oilers. Tampa Bay lost its second straight game on Thursday when it fell to the Calgary Flames. The Lightning are 7-3-0 in their last 10 and have 27-30 ATS. The Oilers defeated the Washington Capitals in overtime 4-3 on Wednesday. Edmonton are 4-5-1 in their last 10 and they are 25-33 ATS.
Tampa Bay enters as the favorite at -140, with odds set at 120 for Edmonton. Received 1.5 goals, the odds for the Lightning change to 175 while the Oilers are at -215 when scoring 1.5 goals. The total is set at 6.5 goals. Tampa Bay has dominated Edmonton in recent years, winning the last five games between these teams, including a 5–3 victory on February 23. The Lightning are 8-1-1 in the last 10 meetings while the Oilers are 2-8-0.
Odds
It’s one of those “let’s not end the game” kind of thing. The Lightning are simply the better team overall and have been the Oilers’ numbers over the past few seasons, winning this matchup in five consecutive meetings. I think Tampa is going into Edmonton today with a win on their mind because there’s no way they’re going to allow themselves a three-game losing streak at this point in the season. I don’t like Lightning’s odds of winning outright, and I don’t trust spreads here, so I’m going to take the classic 3-way moneyline bet at Plus Money, forcing them to win in regulation.
Pick
The Lightning entered the competition amid a two-game loss following Thursday’s 4-1 loss to Calgary. Tampa Bay is looking to avoid a third straight defeat, which has happened only twice this season.
The Lightning have found success when priced as a road favorite, as they are 8-2 in their last 10 games in such conditions. Goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy is the predictable starter and will bounce back with a rare setback.
One of the league’s best goalscorers, Wasilewski has had a lot of success starting for the Lightning at a time when he is priced as a street favorite. Vasilevskiy has won eight of his last 10 road games as favourites, with all eight of those victories falling under regulation.
After some poor starts recently, we should expect a bounce-back game from Vasilevsky. This season, he is seventh in the league with more 5-on-5 goals saved per 60 minutes than expected.
Vasilevsky will have a lot in front of him as the back-to-back world champions have yet another stellar lineup. Tampa Bay is 10th in the league in 5-on-5 xG per 60 minutes (xGF) and fifth in 5-on-5 xGA per 60 minutes.
NHL Odds
Despite their recent woes, Lightning is better overall. Those two defeats came against very impressive teams. A quality that Oilers do not have. What makes me even more confident in the Road team is their 8-2 record as Road favorites in their last 10 matches. The Oilers have played as underdogs only three times at home and have 1–2 ATS in those games with an 8 goal difference.
There is also a huge difference in the target. The Oilers will start Mikko Koskinen tonight, despite some serious struggles in the recent past. Her savings percentage and GAA are terrible and she ranks 19th among goals saved above expectations. Andrei Vasilevsky of Lightning is expected to debut and is one of the best in the business. They have struggled in recent matches, but last week the entire team appeared to be stuck in the mud. I think Vasilevsky and the Lightning are back on track after beating the Oilers on their home ice tonight.
