Tampa Bay Lightning vs Florida Panthers Prediction, 5/8/2021 NHL Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Tampa Bay Lightning vs Florida Panthers

Date: Saturday, May 8, 2021

Location: BB&T Center in Sunrise, FL

TV: ESPN+

Odds/Point Spread: Lightning (-140) Panthers (+120)

Sergei Bobrovsky and the Florida Panthers (35-14-5) play the Tampa Bay Lightning (36-14-3) at BB&T Center on Saturday. The Lightning open this game at -140 while the Panthers are priced at +120. The total has been set at 5.5.

The Lightning went home feeling good about their game by earning a 6-2 win over the Stars in the last game they played. The Lightning had a solid offensive performance and it showed in the victory. In the outing, they scored on 6 of the 20 shots they put on net. Furthermore, they had 4 opportunities with more players on the ice and were able to notch 1 goal. Tampa Bay accumulated 8 penalty minutes in this outing. The Corsi for the Lightning came in at 40 and the Corsi against when the final whistle blew was 33 meaning they had a Corsi rate of 54.8%. Their Fenwick came in at 29 and the Fenwick against finished at 26, giving them a Fenwick percentage of 52.7%. They had 22 face-off wins at even strength and were beaten on 22 attempts to win the face-off. When starting in the offensive zone they sat at 48.0% and they had a PDO at even strength of 119.9 for this matchup.

Tampa Bay Lightning opponents have earned 171 power play tries (3rd in pro hockey) and have a total of 28 goals in those chances. The Lightning have had 1,487 shots taken against them and are the owners of a save percentage of .912. Tampa Bay has tried 1,606 shots and is the owner of a shooting percentage of 11.0%. When playing at even strength, the Lightning have allowed 103 goals while getting 138 on the offensive side of the ice. Tampa Bay steps onto the ice with 165 power play opportunities and they have added 39 goals out of those tries, giving them a percentage of 23.64%. For the season, they have scored 75 points and their points percentage is sitting at .708. With respect to their goal scoring prowess, the Tampa Bay Lightning have earned 177 goals (6th in the NHL) on the campaign and have allowed 131.

The man protecting the goal in this game is Curtis McElhinney. For his professional hockey career, McElhinney has 92 quality starts and his rate for quality starts is .469. He has a save percentage of .908 for his 12,959 minutes played. McElhinney has had 6,608 shot attempts against him and has accrued 5,998 total saves. Opponents have racked up 610 goals versus McElhinney in his professional career and his goals against rate is 2.82. He has accumulated a win-loss record of 94-94-20 and he started in 196 games. McElhinney has taken the ice for 248 matchups over the course of his NHL career.

The last time they were on the ice, Florida squared up with the Stars in a game where the Panthers took home the victory by a score of 5-4. Florida wrapped up this game with a 53.7% Corsi rate. These Corsi statistics are telling of the type of game that Florida played and they looked like the better team in this game. They had a Fenwick percentage of 60.3% with a Fenwick of 44 and the Stars having notched a 29 Fenwick at even strength. They had a PDO at even strength of 99 and they'll go home having earned an oZS percentage of 41.4%. The Panthers recorded 5 goals of the 43 shots on goal they were seeking. They had 4 power play attempts in this one and netted 1 out of those attempts.

Florida has attempted 1,889 shots (1st in professional hockey) and has accumulated a shot percentage of 9.48%, while allowing the opposition 1,623 shots. They have recorded a penalty kill rate of 78.48% on their opponents 158 power play chances, and their save percentage sits at 90.8%. They have recorded 179 power play chances and they have accumulated a power play percentage of 21.23%. The Panthers have accumulated 141 goals at even strength and 38 goals (5th in the NHL) while on the power play. They have granted a total of 150 goals to be scored by of a combination of 116 goals at even strength and 34 goals while they had less men on the ice. During this campaign, the Florida Panthers have earned a total of 179 goals, 75 points, and a points percentage of .694.

Across the rink you will find Sergei Bobrovsky in goal. Bobrovsky has amassed a career mark of 296-180-45 and has played in 537 games. Bobrovsky's percentage of quality starts sits at 56.4% and he has made 295 quality starting assignments in his professional career. He has gathered 14,454 stops out of 15,774 shots tried, which gives him a save % of .916. His opponents are averaging 2.56 goals/game and he has surrendered 1,320 goals altogether. He was named a starter in 523 contests and has been on the ice for 30,933 minutes.

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

Guy's Pick: Take Tampa Bay (-140)

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