Offense meets defense at Canada Life Centre on Friday as the explosive Tampa Bay Lightning (24-12-1) are on the road to face the suffocating Winnipeg Jets (24-13-1). Tampa Bay is coming off a 5-1 loss against the Wild on Wednesday, ending a four-game winning streak. The Lightning committed five penalties in the game, conceding one power play goal.
Brayden Point was the only player to find the net for the Lightning. Brian Elliott saved only 28 of 32 shots against (.875%) in the loss.Winnipeg won their third in a row, beating the Flames 3-2 on Tuesday. Josh Morrissey, Brenden Dillon, and Sam Gagner each scored once for the Jets. Connor Hellebuyck saved 33 of 35 shots in the win (.942%).
HEAD TO HEAD
The teams split their two meetings last season, the last of which was a 7-4 victory for the Lightning in April. Nikita Kucherov (2G 2A) and Victor Hedman (0G 4A) each had four points to lead Tampa Bay. Kyle Connor led Winnipeg with two points (1G 1A). Elliott got the win despite saving only 14 of 18 shots (.777%).
FACING OFF
Tampa Bay is averaging 3.51 goals per game for the season, fourth in the NHL. The visitors will face a tough challenge against a Jets team that is allowing only 2.55 goals a game (2nd).
Meanwhile, Winnipeg has found the net 3.18 times a game on average, 18th in the league, and the Lightning are allowing opponents to score 2.89 goals per game (13th).
The Lightning’s 27.48% power play percentage is the fourth-best in the league, while the Jets rank 15th with a conversion rate of 23.08%. When it comes to penalty killing, Winnipeg has the league’s sixth-ranked PK% at 82.69%, while Tampa Bay is ninth at 81.82%.
TOP PERFORMERS:
With 54 points this season, fifth-most in the NHL, Kucherov is the top skater for the Lightning. He leads the league with 41 assists and has added 13 goals of his own. In the net, Andrei Vasilevskiy (16-9-1) is Tampa Bay’s top goaltender.
He has a 2.42 GAA and a .921% save percentage. Connor (44 points), Morrissey (43), and Pierre-Luc Dubois (41) lead the Jets in scoring. Connor has 16 goals and 28 assists, while Morrissey has seven goals and 36 assists (5th).
Dubois has 17 goals and 24 assists. Hellebuyck (19-9-1) is the top goalie for Winnipeg with a goals against average of 2.31, fourth-best in the league. He has a save percentage of .928%, second-best.
HOME AND AWAY
Tampa Bay is 9-8-0 away from Amalie Arena this season. Winnipeg is 14-6-0 at home this season.
SportsTips’ NHL Pick:
Tampa Bay Lightning (-110)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
