Amalie Arena plays host to an Atlantic Division tilt as the Ottawa Senators make the journey to Tampa Bay to face the Lightning. It’s the fourth and final time that the two clubs will go at it in the regular season. The first puck will drop at 7:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, March 13, and you’ll be able to catch the game live on Fox Sports Sun.
Ottawa Senators at Tampa Bay Lightning Odds
Tampa Bay enters the game as the noticeable favorite with a moneyline of -300. The line for Ottawa sits at +250 and the oddsmakers have set the Over/Under (O/U) at an even 6 goals (-120 for the over, +100 for the under).
Tampa Bay is 48-21 straight up (SU) and has earned moneyline bettors 14.7 units this season. That win percentage, ranked first in the league so far this season, is a solid improvement compared to what the team did during the 2016-17 season (42-40). Of its 69 games this season, 44 have gone over the total, while 24 have gone under and just one has pushed. The team’s 25-8 SU at home this year.
The Lightning come into the matchup with the third-best power-play unit in the NHL, as the team has scored on 23.9 percent of their extra-man chances this season. On the other hand, their penalty kill is ranked 25th overall, and they’ve successfully killed off 77.5 percent of all penalties.
The Lightning, as a collective unit, have been whistled for penalties 4.0 times per game overall this season, 4.0 per game over their last five games total, and 4.4 per game over their last five home outings. The team’s had to kill penalties for 11.6 minutes per contest over their last five home games.
Sporting a .925 save percentage and 29.7 saves per game, Andrei Vasilevskiy (40-16-3) has been the primary goalkeeper for Tampa Bay this year. If the Bolts choose to give him a rest, however, Tampa Bay could turn to Louis Domingue (5-10-10 record, .884 save percentage, 3.67 goals against average).
The Bolts will continue to lean on the offensive production via Nikita Kucherov and Steven Stamkos. Kucherov (88 points) has put up 34 goals and 54 assists and has recorded multiple points on 28 different occasions this year. Stamkos has 27 goals and 52 assists to his credit and has notched a point in 47 games.
Over on the other bench, Ottawa is 24-44 straight up (SU) and has lost 20.0 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 68 regular season contests, 35 of its games have gone over the total, while 32 have gone under and none have pushed. The Senators are 10-24 SU as the away team this season.
The Senators have converted on just 16.1 percent of their power play opportunities this year, a mark that places them in the bottom-five overall among NHL teams. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 27th overall and it’s successfully killed off 76.3 percent of all penalties.
Ottawa’s skaters have been whistled for penalties 3.5 times per game in total this season, and 2.8 per game over their last five on the road. The team’s been forced to kill penalties just 5.7 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Craig Anderson (27.7 saves per game) has been the primary option in the net for Ottawa. Anderson has 21 wins, 29 losses, and six OT losses to his credit, while registering a .902 save percentage and 3.24 goals against average this year.
For the visiting Senators, the offense will be coordinated by Mark Stone, who’s got 42 assists and 20 goals this year.
Ottawa Senators at Tampa Bay Lightning Betting Predictions
Free Pick: SU Winner – Lightning, O/U – Over
Notes
Betting Trends
56.3 percent of Tampa Bay’s wins have come by two or more goals (the team is 27-12 overall in such games) while 37.5 percent of Ottawa’s wins have come by two goals or more (9-21 overall in such games).
Extra-man opportunities could have a critical role in tonight’s matchup. The Senators are 10-21 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 17-29 when they’re in the box for fewer than 10 penalty minutes, total. The Lightning are 25-11 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 28-12 in games where they’re in the box for less than 10 minutes.
Four of Tampa Bay’s last ten games have gone to a shootout. The team is 4-0 in those games and 6-2 overall in shootouts this season.
Tampa Bay might hold an advantage if it’s a tight one late. The team’s 21-9 in games decided by one goal, while Ottawa is just 15-23 in such games.
The over has hit in four of Tampa Bay’s last five outings.
Tampa Bay has scored 3.7 goals per game overall this year, but has upped it to 5.0 per contest in its last five games (the team’s a perfect 1-0 SU during that span).
Tampa Bay skaters have averaged 8.6 giveaways over its last five home games, right in line with its season average of 8.4 giveaways per game (the 10th-fewest in the league).
Ottawa has averaged 7.0 giveaways over its last five home games, an improvement from its season average of 9.9 giveaways per game (ranked 19th overall).
Ottawa skaters have accounted for the league’s ninth-most hits per game (23.9).
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