A pair of teams that have put themselves squarely in the playoff hunt, the Minnesota Wild and the Tampa Bay Lightning collide at Amalie Arena for an East-West showdown. Fox Sports North will air the matchup, and the puck drops at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday, December 23.
Minnesota Wild vs. Tampa Bay Lightning Odds
Earning 12.8 units for moneyline bettors, Tampa Bay is 25-9 straight up (SU) overall in the 2017-18 season. That winning percentage, ranked first in the NHL in this young season, is an improvement over the 42-40 record from the 2016-17 season campaign. Of the team’s 34 games this season, 21 have gone over the total, while 13 have gone under and none have pushed. The team’s 14-3 SU at home this season.
The Lightning come into the matchup with the second-strongest power-play unit in the NHL, as they have converted on 27.6 percent of their extra-man advantages this year. On the other hand, their penalty kill is ranked 25th overall, and they’ve successfully killed off 78.2 percent of all penalties.
The Lightning, as a collective unit, have been penalized 4.1 times per game overall this season, and 2.6 per game over their last five outings at home. The team’s had to stave off opponent power plays for 8.9 minutes per game over their last 10 matchups, in total.
Averaging 29.8 saves per game with a .931 save percentage, Andrei Vasilevskiy (22-6-1) has been the top goalkeeper for the Bolts this year. If Tampa Bay chooses to rest him, however, the team may turn to Peter Budaj (3-3-3 record, .878 save percentage, 3.67 goals against average).
The Bolts will continue looking for leadership from Nikita Kucherov and Steven Stamkos. Kucherov (50 points) has produced 23 goals and 27 assists and has recorded multiple points in 17 different games this year. Stamkos has 13 goals and 32 assists to his name and has recorded a point in 24 games.
On the other bench, Minnesota is 18-17 straight up (SU) and has lost 0.6 units for moneyline bettors this year. A total of 17 of its matches have gone over the total, while 15 have gone under and just two have pushed. As the road team so far, the Wild are 8-11 SU.
The Wild have converted on 20.4 percent of their power play opportunities this season, a mark that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked fourth overall and it’s successfully killed off 83.7 percent of all opponent power plays.
Minnesota’s players have been penalized 4.3 times per game in total this season, and 5.2 per game over their last five road outings. The team’s been forced to stave off opponent power plays 11.0 minutes per game over their last five road outings.
Devan Dubnyk (.916 save percentage and 2.69 goals against average) has been the primary option in goal for Minnesota. Dubnyk is averaging 27.8 saves per game and has 13 wins, 10 losses, and two OT losses to his credit.
Leading the offensive attack for the visiting Wild will be Eric Staal (14 goals, 17 assists) and Jason Zucker (14 goals, 11 assists).
Minnesota Wild vs. Tampa Bay Lightning Free Picks
Predictions: SU Winner – Lightning, O/U – Over
Notes
Betting Notes
Over Tampa Bay’s last ten outings, five of them have been decided by two or more goals (the team is 5-0 in those games).
The extra-man advantage could have a critical role in the outcome of this game. The Wild are 3-5 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 12-7 in games where they’re in the penalty box for fewer than 10 minutes, total. The Lightning are 15-4 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 13-4 in games where they’re in the box for less than 10 minutes.
Minnesota is 2-1 in games decided by a shootout this season while Tampa Bay is 2-1 in shootouts.
The total has gone over in three of Tampa Bay’s last five outings.
Tampa Bay is ranked 10th this season with 8.5 giveaways per game. That figure has improved recently, however, as the team’s averaged 7.0 giveaways over its last 10 games and 5.4 giveaways over its last five.
Minnesota has averaged 9.6 giveaways over its last five home games, a rise over its season average of 6.6 giveaways per game (the fifth-fewest in the league).
