by Chuck Sommers
Wednesday, Jan 25, 2023
Time: 7 p.m. ET
Venue: Amalie Arena, Tampa, FL
Where to watch: BSSUN, NESN, SNP, SNO, SNE, TVAS
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: NL
FanDuel: EVEN
BetMGM: EVEN
Caesars: Lightning -115, Bruins -105
Season record
Bruins: 38-5-4
Lightning: 30-15-1
We’ve hit the halfway mark in the NHL season. Yes, you read that right. We’re really hit that halfway mark that quickly. If you blinked, you probably missed a lot of good things happen in the hockey world. And with football about to be out of the way, look for our champion handicappers to get back on the rink. Oskeim Sports is on a 13-5-0 run in the NHL over the last 30 days, as is Will Rogers. Sean Murphy has also cashed in with a 16-10-0 run in the last month. Make sure you’re following our champion handicappers at bigal.com to get on this winning action!
Bruins - Lightning preview, prediction and analysis
Recent results
Bruins: won 4-2 at Canadiens on Tuesday
Lightning: won 4-2 vs. Wild on Tuesday
The Boston Bruins will be playing the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday, January 26 in Tampa Bay, Florida.
The Boston Bruins won against the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday, January 24 in Montreal with a score of 4-2. The Boston Bruins currently rank 1st in the Atlantic Division. Patrice Bergeron broke a tie with 2:55 left in the third period, and the Boston Bruins became the fastest to 80 points in NHL history with their sixth straight win. Bergeron won an offensive-zone face-off before scoring on a rebound in the slot.
"We had a set-up play, it worked out well," Bergeron said. "The puck went to [David Pastrnak] for that shot and I was trying to beat my coverage to try to find a loose puck, and it trickled through a couple of skates. I got lucky on that one and got a good screen on the shot; I don't think [Canadiens goalie Sam Montembeault] could really see anything."
Pastrnak scored and had three assists, David Krejci had a goal and an assist, and Jeremy Swayman made 20 saves for Boston.
"A lot of it is confidence. We keep winning, right? So, it's a big part of it," Pastrnak said regarding the record. "But at the same time, we are all going every single night. All four lines are there for each other and they're all playing together and we're a tight group."
The Bruins continue to find a way. It really is incredible, and I know we say it every other day that they keep finding ways to win, but they're still on a pace of nine wins in 10 games. More importantly, this run also solidifies how good Linus Ullmark and Swayman have been. The under has gone 4-1-2 in the last seven. Goaltending rules the roost here.
The Tampa Bay Lightning won against the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday, January 24 in Tampa Bay, Florida with a score of 4-2. The Tampa Bay Lightning currently rank 3rd in the Atlantic Division. Corey Perry scored two goals, Nikita Kucherov had a goal and an assist, and Ross Colton and Mikhail Sergachev each had two assists for Tampa Bay. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 33 saves for his 250th NHL victory.
"It was big boy hockey out there tonight," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. "It was a fun game to be a part of."
Steven Stamkos gave Tampa Bay a 3-2 lead at 14:22 of the third period. Sergachev's initial pass to Stamkos in the slot hit off two Wild defenders and ricocheted near the right post, where Stamkos shot it into the net off the chest of Ryan Hartman.
"It was a good puck possession breakout," Stamkos said. "A little bit of a broken play. For all the good plays that don't go in you are rewarded for one like that."
Prior to the game, Tampa Bay honored Stamkos for scoring his 500th NHL goal in a 5-2 win at the Vancouver Canucks on Jan. 18.
"It's great to be at home and celebrate that with my family, my teammates, the coaching staff. They were great tonight," Stamkos said. "Obviously, a ton of respect for those guys. Those guys are legends in our game, and to be one of the three active guys with those two guys is pretty surreal."
The trip back home was exactly what Tampa Bay needed after the quick Western Canada road trip. To get four on Minnesota in that fashion was hard-earned. They'll need to do it again, and get another strong effort from Vasilevskiy to make it happen.
Prediction
The Lightning are going to have to get one on Boston at some point. Whether it be now or in the playoffs. Might as well get one now to boost the confidence. Lightning 4, Bruins 3
The Boston Bruins will be playing the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday, January 26 in Tampa Bay, Florida.
The Boston Bruins won against the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday, January 24 in Montreal with a score of 4-2. The Boston Bruins currently rank 1st in the Atlantic Division. Patrice Bergeron broke a tie with 2:55 left in the third period, and the Boston Bruins became the fastest to 80 points in NHL history with their sixth straight win. Bergeron won an offensive-zone face-off before scoring on a rebound in the slot.
"We had a set-up play, it worked out well," Bergeron said. "The puck went to [David Pastrnak] for that shot and I was trying to beat my coverage to try to find a loose puck, and it trickled through a couple of skates. I got lucky on that one and got a good screen on the shot; I don't think [Canadiens goalie Sam Montembeault] could really see anything."
Pastrnak scored and had three assists, David Krejci had a goal and an assist, and Jeremy Swayman made 20 saves for Boston.
"A lot of it is confidence. We keep winning, right? So, it's a big part of it," Pastrnak said regarding the record. "But at the same time, we are all going every single night. All four lines are there for each other and they're all playing together and we're a tight group."
The Bruins continue to find a way. It really is incredible, and I know we say it every other day that they keep finding ways to win, but they're still on a pace of nine wins in 10 games. More importantly, this run also solidifies how good Linus Ullmark and Swayman have been. The under has gone 4-1-2 in the last seven. Goaltending rules the roost here.
The Tampa Bay Lightning won against the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday, January 24 in Tampa Bay, Florida with a score of 4-2. The Tampa Bay Lightning currently rank 3rd in the Atlantic Division. Corey Perry scored two goals, Nikita Kucherov had a goal and an assist, and Ross Colton and Mikhail Sergachev each had two assists for Tampa Bay. Andrei Vasilevskiy made 33 saves for his 250th NHL victory.
"It was big boy hockey out there tonight," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. "It was a fun game to be a part of."
Steven Stamkos gave Tampa Bay a 3-2 lead at 14:22 of the third period. Sergachev's initial pass to Stamkos in the slot hit off two Wild defenders and ricocheted near the right post, where Stamkos shot it into the net off the chest of Ryan Hartman.
"It was a good puck possession breakout," Stamkos said. "A little bit of a broken play. For all the good plays that don't go in you are rewarded for one like that."
Prior to the game, Tampa Bay honored Stamkos for scoring his 500th NHL goal in a 5-2 win at the Vancouver Canucks on Jan. 18.
"It's great to be at home and celebrate that with my family, my teammates, the coaching staff. They were great tonight," Stamkos said. "Obviously, a ton of respect for those guys. Those guys are legends in our game, and to be one of the three active guys with those two guys is pretty surreal."
The trip back home was exactly what Tampa Bay needed after the quick Western Canada road trip. To get four on Minnesota in that fashion was hard-earned. They'll need to do it again, and get another strong effort from Vasilevskiy to make it happen.
Prediction
The Lightning are going to have to get one on Boston at some point. Whether it be now or in the playoffs. Might as well get one now to boost the confidence. Lightning 4, Bruins 3
Betting trends
Bruins are 10-2 after a division game this season.
Bruins are 9-6 off a road win this season.
Bruins are 15-2 after allowing 2 goals or less in 2 straight games this season.
Lightning are 15-9 off an over this season.
Lightning are 41-18 when revenging a loss in the same season the last 3 years.
Projected lines
Bruins:
Brad Marchand -- Patrice Bergeron -- Craig Smith
Pavel Zacha -- David Krejci -- David Pastrnak
Taylor Hall -- Charlie Coyle -- Trent Frederic
Nick Foligno -- Joona Koppanen -- A.J. Greer
Matt Grzelcyk -- Charlie McAvoy
Hampus Lindholm -- Brandon Carlo
Derek Forbort -- Connor Clifton
Linus Ullmark
Brad Marchand -- Patrice Bergeron -- Craig Smith
Pavel Zacha -- David Krejci -- David Pastrnak
Taylor Hall -- Charlie Coyle -- Trent Frederic
Nick Foligno -- Joona Koppanen -- A.J. Greer
Matt Grzelcyk -- Charlie McAvoy
Hampus Lindholm -- Brandon Carlo
Derek Forbort -- Connor Clifton
Linus Ullmark
Lightning:
Brandon Hagel -- Brayden Point -- Nikita Kucherov
Anthony Cirelli -- Steven Stamkos -- Alex Killorn
Ross Colton -- Nicholas Paul -- Pat Maroon
Vladislav Namestnikov -- Pierre-Edouard Bellemare -- Corey Perry
Victor Hedman -- Zach Bogosian
Mikhail Sergachev -- Nick Perbix
Ian Cole -- Erik Cernak
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Brandon Hagel -- Brayden Point -- Nikita Kucherov
Anthony Cirelli -- Steven Stamkos -- Alex Killorn
Ross Colton -- Nicholas Paul -- Pat Maroon
Vladislav Namestnikov -- Pierre-Edouard Bellemare -- Corey Perry
Victor Hedman -- Zach Bogosian
Mikhail Sergachev -- Nick Perbix
Ian Cole -- Erik Cernak
Andrei Vasilevskiy
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Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
