Tampa Bay Lightning vs. New York Rangers Prediction: Expect Tight Checking and Strong Goaltending Tonight
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. New York Rangers Prediction: Expect Tight Checking and Strong Goaltending Tonight
The Tampa Bay Lightning stormed back from a 2-0 series deficit with 2 wins at home, 3-2 and 4-1 over the New York Rangers. Tampa did a fantastic job of staying out of the penalty box in Game 4, limiting the Rangers to only 2 Power Plays, which came in the 3rd, when the game was already decided. Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 62 of the 65 shots he faced in the 2 games and Tampa's first line of Stamkos-Kucherov-Palat stayed hot as they combined for 11 points to get this series even.
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. New York Rangers Line Movement
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. New York Rangers Prediction
After a high scoring Game 1, which saw 6 goals, the series has tightened up as each of the following 3 games has seen the total land on exactly 5 goals. Both Igor Shesterkin and Andrei Vasilevskiy, are dialed in right now, especially the Big Cat, who got off to a slow start in the series.
After a high scoring first round series with the Maple Leafs, the Under is 6-2 in Lightning games. After a high scoring round 1 against the Penguins, the under is 8-3 in Ranger games. The Rangers have scored 17 Power Play goals, which leads the playoffs. They have scored a Power Play goal in 13 of their 18 playoff games. Tampa did a great job of neutralizing New York's Power Play in Game 4, by simply not taking penalties. This will be the key to the rest of the series and the Bolts have owned play 5 on 5. Tampa Bay has a xGF of 11.42 and an xGA of 7.16 and they have had 54 high danger scoring chances to 38 against.
I am not interested in laying -140 on a total but I also do not see 6 goals being scored here. Despite each of the last 3 games landing exactly on 5 goals, I'll go with the Under 5, at plus money and risk a push, given the importance of this pivotal Game 5.
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. New York Rangers Pick
- Under 5 +125 (Bet $100 to win $125)
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Article Author
Born and raised in Philadelphia, Tone has been handicapping the four major sports for over twenty years. An NHL enthusiast, Tone’s expertise lies on the ice. He’s excelled and profited finding the right angles on NHL games, particularly with player props, game props, and game totals. A contributor to several gaming sites, you can follow him on Twitter @TonesTakes.