Two of the league’s most penalized teams are set to square off at Canadian Tire Centre on Thursday, as the Ottawa Senators (34-32-5) welcome the Tampa Bay Lightning (42-24-6).
Tampa Bay is coming off a 3-2 loss against the Canadiens on Tuesday. The Lightning took advantage of their power play opportunities, scoring once on two shots while holding Montreal without a power play goal.
Pat Maroon and Brayden Point each scored once for the Lightning. Andrei Vasilevskiy saved only 17 of 20 shots against (.850%) in the loss. Ottawa fell 2-1 to the Bruins on Tuesday. Dylan Gambrell was the only player to score for the Senators. Mads Sogaard saved 33 of 35 shots (.942%) in the loss.
HEAD TO HEAD
The Lightning won the first meeting between the teams this season, a 4-3 victory in November, their third straight win against Ottawa. Nikita Kucherov led Tampa Bay with three points (1G 2A). Mathieu Joseph, Gambrell, and Claude Giroux were on the scoresheet for Ottawa. Vasilevskiy got the win despite allowing three goals on 15 shots (.800%).
FACING OFF
Tampa Bay is averaging 3.43 goals per game for the season, eighth in the NHL, and they are taking on a Senators team that is allowing 3.24 goals a game (18th).
Meanwhile, Ottawa has found the net 3.08 times a game on average, 20th in the league, and the Lightning are allowing opponents to score 3.04 goals per game (13th).
Power play opportunities in this matchup should be plentiful, as the Lightning and Senators have more penalties per game than most teams in the NHL. The Lightning are averaging 4.38 penalties/game, fifth-most in the league, while the Senators have been penalized 4.62 times a game on average (31st).
The Lightning’s 25.51% power play percentage is the third-best in the league, while the Senators rank seventh with a conversion rate of 23.77%. In terms of penalty killing, Ottawa has the league’s sixth-ranked PK% at 82.81%, while Tampa Bay is 15th at 79.82%.
TOP PERFORMERS:
With 100 points this season, third-most in the NHL, Kucherov is the top skater for the Lightning. He is among the league leaders with 72 assists (2nd) and has added 28 goals of his own. In the net, Vasilevskiy (31-19-4) is Tampa Bay’s top goaltender. He has a 2.70 GAA and a .913% save percentage.
Tim Stuetzle and Brady Tkachuk lead the Senators in scoring with 78 and 72 points, respectively. Stuetzle has 35 goals and 43 assists, while Tkachuk has 30 goals and 42 assists in 71 games. Cam Talbot (15-14-1) has the best goals against average for Ottawa at 2.85. He has a save percentage of .905%.
HOME AND AWAY
Tampa Bay is 17-17-1 away from home this season. Ottawa is 19-13-3 at Canadian Tire Centre this season.
SportsTips’ NHL Pick:
TB Lightning (-130)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
