The Tampa Bay Lightning and the Columbus Blue Jackets are set to battle at Nationwide Arena in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals. NBC Sports Network will air the game, and the puck drops at 7 p.m. ET on Sunday, April 14.
Tampa Bay Lightning at Columbus Blue Jackets Odds
Columbus (+110) is currently the underdog to Tampa Bay (-130), and the oddsmakers have set the Over/Under (O/U) at an even 6 goals (-115 for the over, -105 for the under). Those lines have moved after initially opening at -120 over, +100 under.
Tampa Bay is 62-22 straight up (SU) and has earned 24.4 units for moneyline bettors this year. 45 of its games have gone over the total, while 36 have gone under and just three have pushed. This 2018-19 Lightning team is 30-11 SU on the road.
The Lightning’ offensive attack attempted 31.8 shots per game in the regular season, leading to 3.9 goals per contest (ranked first overall in the NHL). In the postseason, however, the club’s down to an average of 26.5 shots on goal and down to 2.0 goals per game.
After accounting for the league’s best power-play unit in the regular season (scoring on 27.8 percent of all opportunities), the Lightning have yet to find net this postseason.
With a .922 save percentage and 29.6 saves per game, Andrei Vasilevskiy (39-16-4) has been the top option in goal for Tampa Bay this year. If it decides to give him a rest, however, Tampa Bay might roll with Louis Domingue (21-5 record, .908 save percentage, 2.88 goals against average).
Columbus is 49-35 straight up (SU) and has earned 6.3 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 84 regular season contests, 46 of its games have gone under the total, while 32 have gone over and just six have pushed. This season, the team is 22-19 SU as the home team.
The Blue Jackets have converted on just 16.3 percent of their power play chances this year, a mark that’s ranked 28th in the NHL. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked third overall, and it’s successfully killed off 85.4 percent of all opponent power plays.
Sergei Bobrovsky (25.8 saves per game) has been the top option in goal for the Blue Jackets. Bobrovsky has 39 wins, 25 losses, and one OT loss to his credit and has recorded a .913 save percentage and 2.56 goals against average this year.
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Columbus Blue Jackets Betting Picks
NHL Prediction: SU Winner – Blue Jackets, O/U – Over
Betting Notes
- For both of these clubs, the over has hit in three of their past five matches.
- Eight of Columbus’ last ten outings have been decided by two or more goals. The team is 7-1 overall in those games.
- Tampa Bay skaters have given out the sixth-most hits in the league (26.0 per game).
