The New York Rangers (45-21-11) host the Tampa Bay Lightning (45-26-6), who will be looking to extend their winning run, at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday. Tampa Bay is coming off a 5-0 win over the Islanders on Saturday, their third win in a row.
The Lightning committed five penalties in the game, though they held the Islanders without a power play goal. Five players found the net for the Lightning. Brayden Point scored and provided two assists to lead the team in scoring.
Andrei Vasilevskiy had a great performance with 38 saves to record his fourth shutout of the season, fourth-most in the league. New York beat the Capitals 5-2 on Sunday. Five players found the net for the Rangers. Artemi Panarin had three assists to lead the team in scoring. Igor Shesterkin saved 26 of 28 shots in the win (.928%).
HEAD TO HEAD
The teams have split their two meetings this season, the most recent of which was a 2-1 (SO) victory for the Lightning in December. Point scored Tampa Bay’s only goal. Vasilevskiy got the win, saving 45 of 46 shots (.978%).
FACING OFF
Tampa Bay is averaging 3.43 goals per game for the season, seventh in the NHL, and they are taking on a Rangers team that is allowing only 2.66 goals a game (4th). Meanwhile, New York has found the net 3.34 times a game on average, 12th in the league, and the Lightning are allowing opponents to score 2.97 goals per game (13th).
Power play opportunities are likely to be plentiful for the Rangers, as the Lightning are averaging 4.39 penalties per game, fourth-most in the NHL. The visitors’ 11.68 penalty minutes a game ranks first-highest.
The home team has been penalized 3.32 times a game (4th-fewest in the league) for an average of 7.60 minutes (4th-fewest).The Lightning’s 25.29% power play percentage is the third-best in the league, while the Rangers rank 10th with a conversion rate of 22.41%. In terms of defending power plays, New York has the league’s 14th-ranked PK% at 80.37%, while Tampa Bay is 15th at 80.17%.
TOP PERFORMERS:
With 106 points this season, third-most in the NHL, Nikita Kucherov is the top skater for the Lightning. He is among the league leaders with 77 assists (2nd) and has added 29 goals of his own. In the net, Vasilevskiy (34-20-4) is Tampa Bay’s top goaltender. He has a 2.57 GAA and a .918% save percentage.
Panarin and Mika Zibanejad lead the Rangers in scoring with 87 and 83 points, respectively. Panarin has 25 goals and 62 assists in 77 games, while Zibanejad has 39 goals and 44 assists in 77 games.
HOME AND AWAY
Tampa Bay is 18-19-1 on the road this season. New York is 22-12-4 at Madison Square Garden this season.
SportsTips’ NHL Pick:
NY Rangers (-120)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
