The New York Islanders and the Tampa Bay Lightning take the ice at Amalie Arena for an Eastern Conference tilt. TVA Sports will broadcast the game, which gets underway at 7:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, December 5.
New York Islanders vs. Tampa Bay Lightning Odds
With a moneyline of -180, Tampa Bay comes into the contest as the heavy favorite. The line for New York sits at +160 and the oddsmakers have put the Over/Under (O/U) at 6 goals (-120 for the over, +100 for the under).
Earning 7.2 units for moneyline bettors, Tampa Bay is 18-8 straight up (SU) overall this year. That winning percentage, ranked first in the NHL so far in the early season, is a solid improvement compared to what the team did during last year’s regular season (42-40). Through 26 regular season contests, 15 of the team’s games have gone over the total, while 11 have gone under and none have pushed. This season, the team is 10-3 SU at home.
The Lightning currently have the best power-play unit in the NHL, as they have converted on 27.8 percent of their extra-man chances this year. On the other hand, their penalty kill is rated ninth overall, and they’ve successfully killed off 82.6 percent of all penalties.
As a team, the Lightning have been penalized 4.0 times per game overall this season, and 3.0 per game over their last five at home. The team has had to kill penalties for just 6.9 minutes per game over their last 10 outings, in total.
Averaging 30.6 saves per game with a .932 save percentage, Andrei Vasilevskiy (17-5-1) has been the top option in goal for the Bolts this year. If the Bolts, however, choose to give him a rest, head coach Jon Cooper could roll with Peter Budaj (1-3-3 record, .867 save percentage, 3.75 goals against average).
Nikita Kucherov and Steven Stamkos will both be focal points for the Lightning. Kucherov (38 points) has tallied 19 goals and 19 assists and has recorded multiple points 12 times this year. Stamkos has 11 goals and 26 assists to his credit and has notched at least one point in 19 contests.
New York is 16-10 straight up (SU) and has earned 5.3 units for moneyline bettors this season. A total of 16 of its outings have gone over the total, while eight have gone under and just one has pushed. As the road team, the Islanders are 8-7 SU so far.
The Islanders have converted on 21.1 percent of their power play chances this year, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 28th overall and it’s successfully killed off 76.2 percent of all opponent power plays.
New York’s skaters have been penalized 3.7 times per game this season, 3.6 per game over their last five games total, and 3.8 per game over their last five games as the visiting team. The team’s been forced to kill penalties just 7.6 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Thomas Greiss (3.61 goals against average and .896 save percentage) has been the primary option in goal for New York. Greiss is averaging 29.1 saves per game and owns an 8-5-2 record.
Josh Bailey (five goals, 26 assists) has been one of the primary offensive playmakers for the visiting Islanders.
New York Islanders at Tampa Bay Lightning Free Picks
Predictions: SU Winner – Lightning, O/U – Over
Notes
Betting Trends
Five of New York’s last ten games have been decided by two goals or more. The team is 4-1 in those games.
Penalties and power plays could prove to be extremely important in the outcome of this matchup. The Islanders are 7-4 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 9-7 in games where they serve fewer than 10 total penalty minutes. The Lightning are 10-4 when the team serves fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 9-4 in games where they’re in the box for less than 10 minutes.
Tampa Bay is 1-1 in games decided by a shootout this season while New York is 2-1 in shootouts.
The total has gone under in three of Tampa Bay’s last five outings.
Tampa Bay has averaged 9.0 giveaways over its last five home games, right in line with its season average of 9.2 giveaways per game (ranked 11th in the league).
New York is ranked 24th this season with 11.2 giveaways per game. That figure has trended upward recently, as the team’s averaged 12.5 giveaways over its last 10 games and 13.4 giveaways over its last five.
