Anaheim Ducks vs. Tampa Bay Lightning Prediction, Preview, and Odds
The Anaheim Ducks are heading to Amalie Arena on Saturday evening to take on the Tampa Bay Lighting in non-conference action. The Ducks (14-26-1, 29 points) are seventh in the Pacific Division right now and are coming off a 6-3 road loss on Thursday against the Carolina Hurricanes. The Lightning (21-17-5, 47 points) are fourth in the Atlantic Division and are riding a two-game winning streak after a 4-3 overtime home victory against the New Jersey Devils on Thursday. This will be the first of two games against one another this season.
Just Sitting Ducks
The Anaheim Ducks are looking to start getting wins after a tough start to the season. Right winge Frank Vatrano has been leading the team as he has 30 points (20 goals, 10 assists) and has recorded four points in his last five games. He scored a goal on his only shot in 17:01 against Carolina in his most recent game. As a team, they have done well as they are 29th in the NHL with 105 total goals scored. They are slightly below average on the power play as they are converting on 25 of their 130 attempts (19.23 percent).
Lukas Dostal has been struggling and is expected to be between the pipes for this game. He has struggled as he is 7-9-1 with a .903 save percentage and 3.46 goals allowed per game. He only played one period against the Hurricanes and allowed one goal on nine shots. As a team, Anaheim ranks 24th in hockey with 139 goals allowed as well. They have been killing penalties at an average level so far. They have killed 105-of-130 (79.78 percent) heading into this game.
Injury Report for Anaheim
Defenseman Pavel Mintyukov: Shoulder (OUT)
Goalie John Gibson: Upper Body (Questionable)
Center Trevor Zegras: Ankle (OUT)
Left Winger Max Jones: Upper Body (OUT)
Center Leo Carlsson: Knee (OUT)
Lighting Strike
The Tampa Bay Lightning have gotten off to a strong start in the first half of the year as they are seventh in the league with 141 total goals scored. Right winger Nikita Kucherov is leading the sport in points, second in assists and third in goals with 69 points (28 goals, 41 assists) right now and scored eight points in his last five games. In his previous game against the New Jersey Devils, he posted a pair of assists on three shots in 21:56 on the ice. Their offense has been a great job in terms of power plays as they have scored on 38-of-136 (27.94 percent) of all their attempts up to this point.
— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) January 13, 2024
Andrei Vasilevskiy is expected to be the starter inside the crease for this matchup and has been trying to find his footing this year. On the season, he is 11-9-0 with 2.95 goals given up and a .896 save percentage. He played decently well in a winning effort against the Devils last time out as he allowed three goals on 30 shot attempts. The Lightning have been a brutal defensive team so far as their 48 goals allowed ranks the fourth-highest in the league. They are barely better than average in terms of penalty kills as they have killed 96-of-119 (80.67 percent) of penalties against them.
Injury Report for Tampa Bay
Left Winger Tanner Jeannot: Upper Body (OUT)
Defenseman Erik Cernak: Upper Body (Questionable)
Defenseman Mikhail Sergachev: Lower Body (OUT)
Defenseman Haydn Fleury: Hand (OUT)
Defenseman Brent Seabrook: Shoulder (OUT)
Center Logan Brown: Undisclosed (OUT)
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Best Bets for this Game
Full-Game Side Bet
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The power play percentage throughout the season show a massive difference as Tampa Bay is fourth in the league with a 27.9 power play percentage while Anaheim is 19th with a 19.2 power play percentage thus far. It is a big reason why these offenses have a sizable gap lately as the Ducks are averaging 2.4 goals in the previous five games while the Lightning are scoring 3.5 goals in their last four games. Go with the Tampa Bay Lightning to cover the puck line at home as the superior team.
Prediction: Tampa Bay Lightning -1.5
Full-Game Total Pick
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These defenses as of late have shown a weakness as Anaheim is allowing 3.75 goals in their previous four games while Tampa Bay is giving up four goals in their last three games. A huge reason why is the fact these teams are not doing well enough at getting stops before it gets to their goalie. The Ducks are 28th with 32.7 shots on goal against per game while the Lightning are 15th with 30.2 shots against per game. All in all, there are too many scoring opportunities to so go with OVER 6.5 GOALS here.
Prediction: OVER 6.5
After playing sports throughout most of middle school, high school, and college, Arthur has been writing about sports for nearly a decade. With years of experience, he has had a very good career in the betting world. Arthur has brought his talent to StatSalt and Winners & Whiners and he has been an integral part of our team. Make sure you follow along with Arthur each and every day. You won't be disappointed.
