This Eastern Conference clash at UBS Arena in New York will open an eight-game slate in the NHL on Sunday, March 27, and here you can read the best Lightning vs. Islanders betting pick and odds.
These Eastern Conference foes have met once this season, and Tampa Bay won that game 4-1 in Florida. After this encounter, they will meet again on the last day of the campaign, also in New York.
The Lightning are -143 moneyline favorites with the total being set at 5.5 goals, according to FanDuel NY Sportsbook.
Tampa Bay avoided the fourth loss in a row
The Tampa Bay Lightning are going through their worst period of the season; they lost six of the previous nine games and were on a three-game losing skid. However, the Lightning managed to avoid the fourth consecutive defeat with a road overtime win over the Detroit Red Wings. Tampa will conclude its four-game road trip with this game against the Islanders.
Although better in most of the game, the Lightning trailed 1-0 to the Red Wings until the final five minutes when Steven Stamkos tied the score with a power-play goal and forced overtime. Stamkos then returned a favor to Brayden Point, who assisted his equalizing goal, with overtime assist for the game-winning goal and two points for Tampa Bay.
Andrei Vasilevskiy will start at the goal against the Islanders on Sunday. The 28-year-old goaltender has a 32-14-2-2 record this season with a 2.39 GAA and a .920 save percentage with two shutouts. The Lightning are allowing 2.75 goals per game (9th in the NHL) and are scoring 3.27 on the other end (8th) on a 10.8 shooting percentage (5th).
New York couldn’t make it three in a row
The New York Islanders are in fine form of late; they won seven of the last ten games and were on a two-game winning run, but the Boston Bruins prevented them from making it three in a row. The Islanders are easily playing their best hockey of the season, and if they continue this way, they could be fighting for a playoff spot.
The Isles couldn’t cope with the red-hot Bruins, who recorded 44 attempts at goal opposite New York’s 27 and deservedly secured a 6-3 victory in Boston. Anders Lee was the Islanders’ best player in this defeat with a pair of points (goal and assist).
Ilya Sorokin will be back at the goal against the Lightning on Sunday. The 27-year old goaltender has a 22-13-3-4 record this season with a 2.29 GAA and a .927 save percentage with six shutouts. The Islanders allow 2.57 goals per game (5th in the NHL) and score 2.73 a night (24th) on a 9.3 shooting percentage (20th).
Trends:
Tampa Bay:
- 3-6 in the last nine games overall
- 2-4 in the last six games against an opponent in the Eastern Conference
- 2-5 in the last seven road games
New York:
- 7-3 in the last ten games overall
- 6-0 in the last six games at home
- 4-1 in the last five in the fourth game of a 4-in-6 situation
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. New York Islanders Pick
Tampa Bay is still in the hunt for the top seed in the East as they are only six points behind the in-state rivals Florida Gators, but are not playing well of late. On the other hand, the Islanders are making a final push for the playoffs, and even though they are 17 points behind the No. 8 seed Washington Capitals, they have 19 games to go and there is still a chance.
New York won each of the previous six home games in Long Island and beat the Lightning in the past two H2H encounters at UBS Arena. I am backing the underdogs to get another W on Sunday.
Pick: Take the New York Islanders at +119
The Total
Each of the last H2H duels produced under 5.5 goals and given we have two fantastic goalies in this game, I don’t expect to see a high-scoring affair. The total has gone Under in 13 of the Islanders’ last 20 games against an opponent in the Eastern Conference. The total went Under in each of Tampa Bay’s previous eight games, while the total has gone Under in seven of the Lightning’s last seven games on the road.
Pick: Go Under 5.5 goals at -110
