Tampa Bay Lightning vs New York Rangers Prediction, Preview and Odds - 06/03/2022

by Amedeus Mastrangelo

Thursday, Jun 02, 2022
Game Time: 8:00 pm ET, Friday, June 3, 2022
Venue:  Madison Square Garden, New York, NY 
Where to Watch:  ESPN

 

Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks

DraftKings:  Moneyline:  Lightning -130, Rangers +110; Over/Under:  5.5 goals
Bet365:  Moneyline:  Lightning -130, Rangers +105; Over/Under:  5.5 goals
BetMGM:  Moneyline:  Lightning -125, Rangers +105; Over/Under:  5.5 goals
 

Season Record

Tampa Bay Lightning:  51-23-8 (3rd place, Atlantic Division)
New York Rangers:  52-24-6 (2nd place, Metropolitan Division)
 
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Tampa Bay Lightning vs New York Rangers Preview and Analysis

 
Recent Form
Tampa Bay Lightning:  7-3-0 last 10
New York Rangers:  7-2-1 last 10
 
 
 

Tampa Bay Lightning Analysis

The Lightning are coming into this game finishing the regular season with 110 points, a 51-23-8 record overall, and they were 24-15-2 in their road games this regular season where they will be in this game. They have won 6 of their last 7 games but are coming into this one off of a loss in their last game which snapped a 6 game winning streak that they were on. Their 6 wins in that span were against the Toronto Maple Leafs in game 6 and game 7 of their 1st series and against the Florida Panthers in all 4 of their games last series while their loss came against the Rangers in their last game which was also game 1 of this series. They lost that game on the road 6-2. Steven Stamkos and Ondřej Palát each scored 1 goal for them in that one. Nikita Kucherov led the team in shots on net in that game with 7. Andrei Vasilevskiy was the starting goalie in that game and he allowed 6 goals on 34 shots with 28 saves and a .824 sv percentage. Their offense has scored 287 goals this season averaging 3.5 goals per game and their defense has allowed their opponents to score 233 goals against them allowing 2.8 goals per game.  
 
 

New York Rangers Analysis

The Rangers are coming into this game finishing the regular season with 110 points, a 52-24-6 record overall, and they are 27-10-4 in their home games this regular season where they will be in this game. They have won 5 of their last 6 games and are coming into this one on a 3 game winning streak. Their last loss was against the Carolina Hurricanes in game 5 of their last series while their 5 wins in that span came against the Hurricanes in game 3, game 4, game 6, game 7 and against the Lightning in their last game which was also game 1 of this series. They won that game at home 6-2. Filip Chytil scored 2 goals for them in that game while Artemi Panarin, Frank Vatrano, Mika Zibanejad, and Chris Kreider each scored 1 goal for them in that one. Mika Zibanejad led the team in shots on net in that game with 7. Igor Shesterkin was the starting goalie in that game and he allowed 2 goals on 39 shots with 37 saves and a .949 sv percentage. Their offense has scored 254 goals this season averaging 3.1 goals per game and their defense has allowed their opponents to score 207 goals against them allowing 2.5 goals per game. 
 
 

 

Lightning vs Rangers Prediction

The Rangers are coming into this game as a slight underdog with the current betting odds. They played a very good game in game 1, taking a series lead 1-0 and they have another game at home here to try and put the Lightning in a position where they have to go back home down 2-0. The Rangers were all over the Lightning in that game, they never trailed and even when they gave the lead up and allowed Tampa to tie the game twice, they scored very quickly afterward and kept a lot of pressure in the Lightning's zone. Shesterkin played a great game as well, he will likely be the Vezina trophy winner this season and he is clearly playing with a chip on his shoulder here to try and prove why he is the best goalie in the NHL and not Vasilevskiy. The Lightning looked very lethargic in that game and were clearly rusty from their time off and that will not likely happen here again. The Lightning do not play defense as well as the Rangers do though, and being on the road in this very hostile environment is tough to play in, especially when the Rangers are a much better team playing there. Between the goaltending, the defense, and the offense recently, the Rangers are the better team here and will keep up that play at home to win another game here and take a 2-0 series lead. The best bet here is on the Rangers to win this game.
 
Lightning Rangers Prediction:  Our NHL Pick for Friday, June 3, 2022 (8:00 pm ET start time) is Rangers 5 Lightning 3.
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NHL Betting Trends

 
Tampa Bay Lightning: 77-60 (-22.3 Units) ML after one or more consecutive overs. 34-30 (-16.6 Units) ML after playing a game where 8 or more total goals were scored. 26-8 OVER when trailing in a playoff series.
New York Rangers: 125-101 (+25.9 Units) ML in all games. 23-15 (+5.4 Units) ML in a home game where the total is 5.5. 9-2 OVER after scoring 5 goals or more in 3 straight games.
 

Key Injuries

 
Tampa Bay Lightning:  B. Point (C) Doub Fri - Lower Body. B. Seabrook (D) out for season - Shoulder.
New York Rangers:  K. Kinkaid (G) Out indefinitely - Upper Body. S. Blais (LW) out for season - Knee.
 
 

Notable Quotes

 
“You’ve got to give them credit. They are a really good hockey team. We certainly didn’t have our best. I think we know what we have to do better. Been in this position before. I am confident we will have a better effort next game. It’s Game 1 of a long series.” - Steven Stamkos after their loss against the Rangers in game 1 on Wednesday.
 
 
“There was a lot of sharpness. Obviously, (the Lightning) were a little bit rusty tonight, they weren't the same after nine days off. ... Our game's good, we're playing well, we're doing the right things now. We just got to continue to do that." - Gerard Gallant after his team’s win against the Lightning in game 1 on Wednesday.
 
 

Starting Lineups

 
Tampa Bay Lightning
LW Stamkos, Steven
C Cirelli, Anthony
RW Kucherov, Nikita
LD Hedman, Victor
RD Cernak, Erik
G Vasilevskiy, Andrei
 
New York Rangers
LW Kreider, Chris
C Zibanejad, Mika
RW Vatrano, Frank
LD Lindgren, Ryan
RD Fox, Adam
G Shesterkin, Igor
 

Statistical Leaders

 
Tampa Bay Lightning
Points: S. Stamkos (106)
Goals: S. Stamkos (42)
Assists: V. Hedman (65)
GAA: B. Elliott (2.43)
 
New York Rangers
Points: A. Panarin (96)
Goals: C. Kreider (52)
Assists: A. Panarin (74)
GAA: I. Shesterkin (2.07)
 
Coaches:
Tampa Bay Lightning: Jon Cooper (10th season)
New York Rangers: Gerard Gallant (1st season)


Amedeus Mastrangelo

About the Author:

Amedeus Mastrangelo has been heavily wagering on all sports for years and plays just about everything, including sides, totals, favorites, underdogs, against the spread, alternative spreads, first half, second half, player props, and futures. The bottom line is, if Mastrangelo can see an edge in any way shape or form, then he's going to take advantage.

All photographic images used for editorial content have been licensed from the Associated Press.

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