Tampa Bay Lightning at Washington Capitals NHL Picks & Predictions 5/15/2018

Tuesday, May 15, 2018

Capital One Arena

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Tampa Bay Lightning travel to Capital One Arena to play the Washington Capitals on Tuesday, May 15, 2018 in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals. The Capitals lead the series 2-0. The opening line for this game has the Lightning at +108 and the Capitals at -141.

Tampa Bay had a record of 54-23-5 this season and on the road they had a record of 25-13-3-2. They were 1st in the Atlantic Division. They scored 296 goals and gave up 236 goals for a point differential of +60. For the season they have an ATS record of 62-32-0 and an over/under record of 55-35-0. Washington was 49-26-7 including 28-11-2-0 at home this season. They finished 1st in the Metropolitan Division. They scored 259 goals and surrendered 239 for a goal differential of +20. Their record against the spread is 59-37-0 while their over/under record is 53-40-0.

Valuable Tampa Bay Lightning Betting Trends

The Tampa Bay Lightning are 62-32-0 straight up this year

The Tampa Bay Lightning are 55-35-0 against the over/under this season

Important Washington Capitals Betting Trends

The Washington Capitals are 59-37-0 straight up this year

The Washington Capitals are 53-40-0 against the over/under this season

Key Tampa Bay Lightning Injuries

05/07/18 LW Adam Erne Lower Body is out indefinitely

Key Washington Capitals Injuries

05/13/18 C Nicklas Backstrom Hand is "?" Tuesday vs Tampa Bay

Player Spotlight

Nikita Kucherov has accumulated 100 total points this season for the Lightning. He has 39 goals this year with 279 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 14%. He has a total of 61 assists on the season and averages 19.8 minutes played per game. Brayden Point averages 19.6 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 15% by scoring 32 goals on 217 shots. He has 34 assists, giving him a total of 66 points on the season. Andrei Vasilevskiy has 44 wins and 17 losses this season in net for the Lightning. He has 2,075 shots against him and he's given up 167 goals. He's made 1,908 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Player Spotlight

Alex Ovechkin has scored 87 total points this year for the Capitals. He has 49 goals this season with 355 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 14%. He has a total of 38 assists on the season and averages 20.1 minutes played per game. Evgeny Kuznetsov averages 18.8 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 14% by scoring 27 goals on 187 shots. He has 56 assists, giving him a total of 83 points on the season. Braden Holtby has 34 wins and 16 losses this year in goal for the Capitals. He has 1,648 shots against him and he's surrendered 153 goals. He's made 1,495 saves for a save percentage of 91%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Lightning have 113 total points this season, which ranks them 3rd in the NHL. They are 1st in the league in goals scored with 296 while they've given up 236 goals, ranking them 19th overall. They have had 276 power play opportunities and have scored 66 goals on those chances for a percentage of 24%. That is 3rd in the NHL. The Lightning have allowed 267 power play opportunities and have given up 64 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 76%, putting them 28th in the league when short-handed. They average 33 shots per game and as a team shoot 11.04% for the season. They allow 33 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 91%. That puts them 8th in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Capitals are 7th in the NHL with a total of 105 points this year. They have 55 power play goals on 244 opportunities for a percentage of 23%. That ranks them 7th in the league as a power play unit. They've allowed 269 power play opportunities and have given up 53 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 80%. That is 15th in the NHL. As a team, the Capitals are 9th in the league with 259 goals scored while they've given up 239 goals, which is 17th overall. They average 29 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 10.89%. As a team they give up 32 shots per game and have a save percentage of 91%. That is 17th in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Tampa Bay is 14th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 51.3%, as they've attempted 4,952 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 4,709 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is 51.2% as they have 3,764 attempts while they have given up 3,582 shots on the defensive end. That ranks them 14th in the league. The Lightning start possessions in the offensive zone 52.9% of the time, which is 9th in the league, while their defensive zone percentage is at 47.1% for the season. That is 27th overall in the NHL. They have 2,441 face-off wins compared to 2,621 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 48.2%. That ranks them 29th in the league. On defense Tampa Bay has 1,728 hits and they have blocked 1,127 shots from the opposition, putting them 26th overall.

Advanced Statistics

The Capitals start possessions in the offensive zone 49.7% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 50.3% for the year. That ranks them 20th and 15th respectively in the NHL. They have 2,467 face-off wins as opposed to 2,427 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 50.4%. That is 18th in the league. On defense Washington has 1,784 hits and they've blocked 1,220 attempts from opposing offenses, ranking them 14th in blocked shots. Washington is ranked 31st in Corsi percentage with 47.4% as they've tried 4,479 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 4,980 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. Their Fenwick percentage is 31st in the NHL at 47.3%, as they have 3,381 shots while they've given up 3,760 attempts on defense.

Who will win tonight's Lightning/Capitals NHL game against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take Washington -141

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