Tampa Bay Lightning vs Buffalo Sabres Prediction, 10/17/2023 NHL Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Tampa Bay Lightning vs Buffalo Sabres

Date: Tuesday, October 17, 2023

Location: KeyBank Center in Buffalo, NY

TV: ESPN

Odds/Point Spread: Lightning (-154) Sabres (+125)

The Tampa Bay Lightning (1-2-0) are traveling to KeyBank Center on Tuesday where they will meet the Buffalo Sabres (0-2-0). The moneyline on this contest has the Lightning at -154 and the Sabres are sitting at +125. The total is 7.

The Tampa Bay Lightning will be looking to get a win in their next outing after their 5-2 loss against the Senators in their last outing. Tampa Bay tallied 8 mins in the box in this outing. In addition, they had 2 power play opportunities but weren't able to make the most of them. The Lightning didn't have a great showing offensively in this loss. In the game, they finished 2 of the 24 shots they tried.

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Regarding their goal scoring prowess, the Tampa Bay Lightning have notched 11 goals (7th in pro hockey) for the season and have allowed 14. For the season, they have 2 points and their points percentage is .333. Tampa Bay steps onto the ice with 9 power play opportunities and they have notched 3 goals during those advantages, giving them a percentage of 33.33%. When playing at even strength, the Lightning have surrendered 13 goals while getting 8 on the offensive side of the ice. Tampa Bay has taken 83 shots and has a shooting percentage of 13.3%. The Lightning so far have had 111 shots tried against them and are the owners of a save percentage of .874. Tampa Bay Lightning opponents have amassed 7 power play opportunities (18th in the league) and have tallied 1 goal in those chances.

The player protecting the goal in this game is Jonas Johansson. Johansson has played in 37 games during his hockey career. He has compiled a win-loss mark of 12-14-4 and got the start in 30 games. The opposition has been able to score 107 goals versus Johansson in his professional hockey career and his average for goals against per game is 3.40. Johansson has seen 940 shots against him and has garnered 833 total saves. He has a save percentage of .886 for his 1,891 minutes guarding the cage. During his career on the ice, Johansson has accrued 12 quality starts and his quality starts percentage is at .400.

When they took the ice last, Buffalo faced the Islanders in a game where the Sabres took the loss by a mark of 3-2. They had 2 power play attempts in this game but weren't able to score a goal. The Sabres scored 2 goals out of the 28 shots on goal they were seeking.

During this campaign, the Buffalo Sabres are sitting with 3 goals, 0 points, in addition to a points percentage of .000. They have allowed 8 goals to be scored by of a combination of 7 goals at even strength and 1 goal while they had less men on the ice. The Sabres have 3 goals at even strength and 0 goals (31st in professional hockey) while on the power play. They have a tally of 5 opportunities on the power play and they have accumulated a power play percentage of 0.00%. Buffalo has attempted 53 shots (24th in the league) and has accumulated a shooting percentage of 5.66%, while allowing the opposition 60 shots. They have a penalty kill rate of 85.71% on their opponents 7 tries on the power play, and their save percentage comes in at 86.7%.

Across the ice you will find Devon Levi defending the net. His opponents are averaging 3.07 goals per game and he has surrendered 28 goals overall. Levi's percentage of quality starts sits at 55.6% and he has accumulated 5 quality starting assignments in his career. He has been a starter 9 games and has played 547 mins. Levi holds a lifetime mark of 5-4-0 and has played in 9 contests. He has a tally of 253 saves out of the 281 shots taken against him, giving him a save percentage of .900.

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

Tony's Pick: Take Tampa Bay (-154)

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