The Tampa Bay Lightning, led by Nikita Kucherov and Steven Stamkos, are preparing to take the ice against Tyler Seguin, Alexander Radulov, and the Dallas Stars at the American Airlines Center in an East-West tilt. NBC Sports Network will air the matchup, and the opening face-off is at 8 p.m. ET on Monday, January 27.
Tampa Bay Lightning at Dallas Stars Odds
Though the team is 29-19 straight up (SU) this season, Tampa Bay has actually lost 1.9 units for moneyline bettors thus far. Through 48 regular season outings, 27 of its games have gone over the total, while 20 have gone under and just one has pushed. As the away team in 2019-20, the Bolts are 14-10 SU.
Tampa Bay enters the match up with the third-best power-play unit in the NHL, as it’s converted on 27.3 percent of its extra-man opportunities this year. Its penalty kill is ranked fifth overall, and the team’s successfully killed off 83.2 percent of all penalties..
Averaging 28.1 saves per game with a .917 save percentage, Andrei Vasilevskiy (24-11-2) has been the top option in goal for Tampa Bay this season. If head coach Jon Cooper decides to rest him, however, Tampa Bay could turn to Curtis McElhinney (5-8-2 record, .902 save percentage, 3.10 goals against average).
On the other side of the ice, Dallas is 27-21 straight up (SU) and has earned 2.4 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 48 regular season contests, 30 of its games have gone under the total, while 16 have gone over and just two have pushed. It’s 15-9 SU as the home team this year.
The Stars have converted on just 19.7 percent of their power play opportunities this year, a mark that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked eighth overall, and it’s successfully killed off 83.0 percent of all penalties.
Ben Bishop has stopped 26.9 shots per game as the top netminder in goal for the Stars. Bishop has 18 wins, 14 losses, and three overtime losses to his name and has recorded a .927 save percentage and 2.28 goals against average this season.
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Dallas Stars Free Picks
Prediction: SU Winner – Lightning, O/U – Over
Betting Trends
Over Dallas’ last ten outings, six of them have been decided by two or more goals (the team is 4-2 in those games).
The Lightning are 11-7 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 18-10 in games where they’re in the penalty box for fewer than 10 total minutes.
Dallas is 2-2 in games decided by a shootout this season while Tampa Bay is 2-0 in shootouts.
Tampa Bay skaters have averaged 7.2 giveaways over its last five home games, its season average of 7.5 giveaways per game (the third-fewest in the NHL).
Dallas is ranked 29th this season with 12.5 giveaways per game. That figure has trended down lately, however, as the team’s averaged 10.5 giveaways over its last 10 games and 8.8 giveaways over its last five.
Tampa Bay skaters have accounted for the 12th-most hits in the league (22.6 per game), but that number’s down to just 16.8 hits over their last five away games.
