Ottawa Senators vs Tampa Bay Lightning Prediction, 12/16/2021 NHL Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Ottawa Senators vs Tampa Bay Lightning

Date: Thursday, December 16, 2021

Location: Amalie Arena in Tampa, FL

TV: Bally Sports Sun

Filip Gustavsson and the Ottawa Senators (9-16-1) are headed to Amalie Arena on Thursday where they'll take on the Tampa Bay Lightning (18-6-4).

The Ottawa Senators were on the right side of the scoreboard with a 8-2 win against the Panthers their last time on the ice. Ottawa accounted for 37 mins in the box in this outing. Moreover, they had 4 power play chances and were able to notch 2 goals. The Senators had a good offensive performance in the win. In the matchup, they finished 8 of the 38 shots they put on goal.

The Senators have had 878 shots attempted against them and are the owners of a save percentage of .892. While playing at even strength, the Senators have given up 76 goals while scoring 56 on the offensive side of the ice. Ottawa Senators opponents have tallied 83 power play opportunities (14th in professional hockey) and have come away with 19 goals in those attempts. For the season, they have racked up 19 points and their points percentage sits at .365. Ottawa has taken 748 shots and is the owner of a shooting percentage of 9.9%. In regard to their scoring, the Ottawa Senators have earned 74 goals (23rd in pro hockey) for the season and have conceded 95. Ottawa comes into the game with 88 power play chances and they have tallied 18 goals out of those attempts, earning them a percentage of 20.45%.

The player guarding the cage in this matchup is Filip Gustavsson. Opponents have been able to score 57 goals versus Gustavsson in his NHL career and his goals against average per game is 3.09. Gustavsson has been involved in 20 matchups throughout his pro hockey career. He has a save percentage of .909 for his 1,107 minutes between the pipes. He has accumulated a mark of 8-8-3 and was named the starter in 17 games. Over the course of his time in hockey, Gustavsson has accrued 10 quality starts and his rate for quality starts is .588. Gustavsson has seen 627 shots taken against him and has accrued 570 saves.

Their last time out, Tampa Bay opposed the Kings in an outing where the Lightning notched a win by a score of 3-2. The Lightning scored 3 goals of the 30 shots on goal they pursued. They had 3 power play attempts in this game but didn't put one in the back of the net.

Tampa Bay has put up 822 shots (24th in professional hockey) and has a shot percentage of 10.95%, while allowing the opposition 841 shots. They have a penalty kill rate of 79.27% on their oppositions 82 tries on the power play, and their save percentage sits at 91.2%. They have a total of 84 opportunities on the power play and they have a power play rate of 17.86%. The Lightning have accumulated 75 goals at even strength and 15 goals (18th in the NHL) while having more men on the ice. They have granted a total of 74 goals to be scored by way of 57 goals at even strength and 17 goals while they were shorthanded. On the year, the Tampa Bay Lightning have earned a total of 90 goals, 40 points, as well as a points percentage of .714.

For the opposition you are likely to see Andrei Vasilevskiy in net. Teams are averaging 2.48 goals per contest and he has allowed 784 goals altogether. Vasilevskiy's rate of quality starts sits at 57.3% and he has earned 180 quality starting assignments in his pro career. He got the starting nod in 314 games and has played for a total of 18,967 mins. Vasilevskiy has compiled a career record of 205-87-22 and has been in goal for 324 games. He is sitting with 9,043 stops out of 9,827 shots taken against him, giving him a save percentage of .920.

Who will win tonight's hockey game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take Ottawa

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