Florida Panthers vs Tampa Bay Lightning Prediction, Preview and Odds - 04/27/2024

Game Time: 5:00 pm ET, Saturday, April 27, 2024

Venue:  Amalie Arena, Tampa, FL

Where to Watch:  TBS, MAX

DraftKings:  Moneyline:  Panthers -125, Lightning +105; Over/Under:  6 goals

Bet365:  Moneyline:  Panthers -125, Lightning +105; Over/Under:  6 goals

BetMGM:  Moneyline:  Panthers -125, Lightning +105; Over/Under:  6 goals

Florida Panthers:  52-24-6 (1st place, Atlantic Division)

Tampa Bay Lightning:  45-29-8 (4th place, Atlantic Division)

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Florida Panthers:  8-1-1 last 10

Tampa Bay Lightning:  3-5-2 last 10

The Panthers are entering this game with 110 points, a 52-24-6 record overall, and they were 26-11-4 in their road games this regular season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game off a win against the Tampa Bay Lightning in their last game, winning that one on the road 5-3. Matthew Tkachuk led the team in goals scored with 2 while Steven Lorentz, Brandon Montour, and Sam Reinhart each scored 1 goal for them in that game. Gustav Forsling and Carter Verhaeghe each led the team in assists with 2 while Matthew Tkachuk and Kevin Stenlund each led the team in shots on net in that game with 5. Sergei Bobrovsky was the starting goalie in that game and he allowed 3 goals on 29 shots with 26 saves and a .896 sv percentage. Their offense has scored 268 goals this season averaging 3.3 goals per game and their defense has allowed their opponents to score 200 goals against them allowing 2.4 goals per game.

The Lightning are entering this game with 98 points, a 45-29-8 record overall, and they were 25-11-5 in their home games this regular season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game off a loss against the Florida Panthers in their last game, losing that one at home 5-3. Tyler Motte, Nicholas Paul, and Steven Stamkos each scored 1 goal for them in that game. Erik Černák, Anthony Duclair, Victor Hedman, Tanner Jeannot, and Nikita Kucherov each led the team in assists with 1 while Michael Eyssimont led the team in shots on net in that game with 5. Andrei Vasilevskiy was the starting goalie in that game and he allowed 4 goals on 30 shots with 26 saves and a .867 save percentage. Their offense has scored 291 goals this season averaging 3.5 goals per game and their defense has allowed their opponents to score 268 goals against them allowing 3.3 goals per game.

The current betting odds have the Lightning listed as a slight underdog in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. This is game 4 of a 7 game series between the 1st seeded Panthers from the Atlantic Division and the 1st seeded Wild Card, the Lightning, for Round 1 of the NHL Eastern Conference playoffs. The Panthers have a 3-0 series lead after winning game 3 of this series on the road. The Lightning looked terrible in game 3 and now find themselves on the verge of elimination here, but that was also their worst game of the series as they looked a lot better in the 2 road games. The Lightning have been a better home team all season though, going 25-11-5 on home ice, and now that they are facing elimination here, they are going to throw everything they have at the Panthers here to stay alive in this series. The Panthers have been a good road team this season and they have looked great in this series, but the Lightning still have lots of playoff experience themselves and they will dig deep in this game to avoid the sweep. The Lightning are going to have more urgency in this game while the Panthers won't be pushing as hard since they are now in a position to end this series on home ice in the next game if they do lose this game. This is a last stand for the Lightning and as a team that won the Stanley Cup multiple times over the last few years, they are going to have some pride in this game on home ice and avoid the sweep. The best way to place a bet here is on the Lightning to win this game. 

Panthers Lightning Prediction:  Our NHL Pick for Saturday, April 27, 2024 (5:00 pm ET start time) is Lightning 5 Panthers 1.

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Florida Panthers: 65-37 (+10.4 units) on the moneyline after a win by 2 goals or more. 88-53 (+10.6 units) on the moneyline after scoring 4 goals or more in their previous game. 15-3 UNDER after a 7 game unbeaten streak. 13-4 UNDER after scoring 5 goals or more in their previous game. 21-9 UNDER after one or more consecutive overs.

Tampa Bay Lightning: 57-53 (-8.5 units) on the moneyline revenging a loss versus opponent. 39-44 (-22.5 units) on the moneyline after playing a game where 8 or more total goals were scored. 9-5 UNDER after allowing 5 goals or more. 5-1 UNDER when facing elimination in a playoff series. 23-16 UNDER after one or more consecutive overs.

Florida Panthers:  S. Bennett (C) Early May - Upper Body. R. Lomberg (LW) Out Sat - Illness.

Tampa Bay Lightning:  H. Fleury (D) Out indefinitely - Undisclosed. J. Johansson (G) Early May - Lower Body. M. Sergachev (D) Early May - Leg. B. Seabrook (D) out for season - Shoulder. L. Brown (C) Out indefinitely - Undisclosed.

“I thought the big story will be penalty killing. It’s just such a dominant, highly skilled, power play.” - Paul Maurice after his team’s win against the Lightning in game 3 of this series on Thursday.

“It’s tough when you get in situations like this what you’re going to say right at this moment (to the team). But the talk is you want the believers to show up to the rink tomorrow. And if you’re not going to believe, then you don’t have to come. Well see how many guys show up tomorrow.” - Jon Cooper after his team’s loss against the Panthers in game 3 of this series on Thursday.

LW Tarasenko, Vladimir

C Barkov, Aleksander

RW Reinhart, Sam

LD Forsling, Gustav

RD Ekblad, Aaron

G Bobrovsky, Sergei

LW Hagel, Brandon

C Point, Brayden

RW Kucherov, Nikita

LD Hedman, Victor

RD Raddysh, Darren

G Vasilevskiy, Andrei

Points: S. Reinhart (94)

Goals: S. Reinhart (57)

Assists: M. Tkachuk (62)

GAA: A.Stolarz (2.03)

Points: N. Kucherov (144)

Goals: B. Point (46)

Assists: N. Kucherov (100)

GAA: A. Vasilevskiy (2.90)

Coaches:

Florida Panthers: Paul Maurice (2nd season)

Tampa Bay Lightning: Jon Cooper (12th season)