Panthers vs Lightning Prediction NHL Picks 2/17/24
The Florida Panthers will play the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday night at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida. Florida has won four games in a row, while Tampa Bay is on a three game winning streak. Let’s take a look at the betting matchup and the Panthers vs Lightning prediction.
Panthers Preview
The Florida Panthers are 35-15-4 this year after they defeated Buffalo by a score of 4-0 in their last game. Florida scored once in the first, once in the second, and twice in the third for the shutout win. The Panthers were out shot by a total of 45-30 and went 1-3 on the power play in the game. Florida has also defeated Pittsburgh, Colorado, and Washington during this four game winning streak. The Panthers are scoring 3.24 goals per game and they are allowing 2.44 goals against per game, while going 25.3% on the power play and 83.2% on the penalty kill. Sam Reinhart has led Florida with 39 goals, 26 assists, and 142 shots on goal. The projected starting goalie for Florida is Sergei Bobrovsky, who is 26-10-2 this year with a 2.42 goals against average and a .914 save percentage.
Lightning Preview
The Tampa Bay Lighting are 30-20-5 this season after they defeated Colorado by a score of 6-3 in their last game. Tampa Bay trailed 3-2 in the third period, but they scored the last four goals in the game for the win. The Lightning out shot Colorado by a total of 39-31 and went 0-2 on the power play in the game. Tampa Bay defeated Boston by a score of 3-2 and Columbus by a score of 4-2 in the two games prior to Colorado. The Lightning are scoring 3.44 goals per game and they are allowing 3.27 goals against per game, while going 30.4% on the power play and 81.3% on the penalty kill. Nikita Kucherov has led Tampa Bay with 36 goals, 57 assists, and 230 shots on goal. The projected starting goalie for Tampa Bay is Andrei Vasilevskiy, who is 19-11-0 this year with a 2.77 goals against average and a .903 save percentage.
Tampa Bay Lightning Team Facts
- The Lightning have won each of their last eight night games at Amalie Arena.
- The Lightning have covered the puck line in each of their last six games as underdogs against the Panthers.
- The Lightning have won the second period in nine of their last 10 games at Amalie Arena following a home win.
- The 'Over 1.5 Goals Period 1' market has hit in each of the Lightning's last six games at Amalie Arena against opponents on a winning streak.
Florida Panthers Team Facts
- The Panthers have won eight of their last nine games.
- The favorites have covered the puck line in each of the Panthers' last four games.
- The 'Over 1.5 Goals Period 1' market has hit in four of the Panthers' last seven games at Amalie Arena against opponents on a winning streak.
- The favorites have won the second period in each of the Panthers' last four games.
Tampa Bay Lightning Player Prop Facts
- Steven Stamkos has scored at least one goal in each of the Lightning's last five games at Amalie Arena.
- Brandon Hagel has recorded at least one point in each of the Lightning's last seven games as underdogs against Eastern Conference opponents.
- Nikita Kucherov has recorded at least one assist in each of the Lightning's last six games at Amalie Arena.
- Nikita Kucherov ranks T1st in the league for multi-point games (28) this season.
Florida Panthers Player Prop Facts
- Sam Reinhart has scored a goal in 13 of the Panthers' last 17 games as favorites.
- Matthew Tkachuk has recorded at least one point in each of the Panthers' last eight Saturday night games.
- Matthew Tkachuk has recorded at least one assist in nine of the Panthers' last 10 games as favorites.
- Sam Reinhart ranks T1st in the league for Game Winning Goals (9) this season.
Matchup/League Facts
- The Tampa Bay Lightning rank 1st in the league for power play goals this season (51).
- The Tampa Bay Lightning rank T4th in the league for Period 1 goals scored per game this season (1.07).
- The Florida Panthers rank 6th in the league in penalty kill percentage this season (83.24%).
- The Florida Panthers rank 1st in the league for shots per game this season (34.1).
Panthers vs Lightning Betting Prediction
Both of these teams come into this matchup on a winning streak and both are in the top three in the Atlantic Division. Tampa Bay is coming off of a nice win against Colorado and they are 18-5-3 at home this year, while Florida is 19-7-2 on the road. The Panthers have been elite on defense this year and they have only allowed four goals in their last four games, but Tampa Bay is one of the higher scoring teams in the NHL. This should be a very good game to watch, but I can’t pass up the plus money with Tampa Bay at home. Take the Lightning here.
