Amalie Arena plays host to an East-West tilt as the Nashville Predators come into town to face the Tampa Bay Lightning. This one gets started at 7:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, November 1 and it can be seen live on Fox Sports Tennesse.
Nashville Predators at Tampa Bay Lightning Odds
Tampa Bay (-125) is currently favored over Nashville (+105) and the Over/Under (O/U) has been set at 6 goals. The line for betting that total stands at -110 for the over and -110 on the under.
Nashville is 9-3 straight up (SU) and has earned 3.9 units for moneyline bettors this season. Six of its games have gone over the total, while five have gone under and just one has pushed. This 2018-19 Predators team is 5-0 SU on the road.
The Predators have found the net on 15.6 percent of their power play chances thus far. That’s a fairly big drop-off from last season, when they were ranked 11th in the NHL by scoring on 21.2 percent of their extra-man advantages. Their penalty kill has fallen off drastically, as they’ve gone from successfully defending 82.2 percent of opponents’ power plays (ranked sixth overall last season) to 75.0 percent this year.
The Preds, as a collective unit, have been sent to the penalty box 3.8 times per game this season. Last year, that number was the highest mark in the league at 4.5 penalties per game. After serving an average of 10.9 penalty minutes per game a season ago the team has had to kill penalties for just 8.6 minutes per matchup this year.
Averaging 24.9 saves per game with a .917 save percentage, Juuse Saros (6-2) has been the top option in goal for Nashville this year. If Nashville chooses to rest him, however, head coach Peter Laviolette could roll with Pekka Rinne (4-1), who has a .929 save percentage and 2.10 goals against average this year.
Filip Forsberg and Ryan Johansen will both lead the offensive attack for the visiting Predators. Forsberg has 14 points on 10 goals and four assists, and has recorded multiple points four times. Johansen has two goals and 11 assists to his name (and has notched at least one point in eight games).
On the other bench, Tampa Bay is 8-3 straight up (SU) and has netted 2.5 units for moneyline bettors this season. Through 11 regular season contests, six of its games have gone under the total, while five have gone over and none have pushed. This year, the team is 5-1 SU at home.
The Lightning have converted on 29.3 percent of their power play opportunities this year, a mark that places it in the top-5 among NHL teams. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked second overall, and it’s successfully killed off 93.2 percent of all penalties.
Lightning players have been sent to the penalty box 4.4 times per game this season. Last year, that number was at 4.1, the fifth-worst mark in the league. After serving an average of 9.6 penalty minutes per game a year ago, the team has been forced to stave off opponent power plays for 9.6 minutes per outing this season.
Andrei Vasilevskiy (29.0 saves per game) has been the top choice in goal for the Lightning. Vasilevskiy has six wins, two losses, and one OT loss and has recorded a .935 save percentage and a solid 1.98 goals against average this year.
Brayden Point (seven goals, seven assists) will pace the offensive attack for Tampa.
Nashville Predators vs. Tampa Bay Lightning Betting Predictions
Pick: SU Winner – Lightning, O/U – Under
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Notes
Betting Notes
The Predators are 4-0 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 6-2 when they serve fewer than 10 total penalty minutes.
After going 6-2 in games decided by a shootout last year, the Lightning are off to a 1-0 start in shootouts this season. Nashville was 6-7 in shootouts last year and has yet to participate in one this time around.
The over has hit in three of Tampa Bay’s last five games.
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