NHL Odds as Canadiens and Lightning Battle on Tuesday Night Hockey
The Tampa Bay Lightning and Montreal Canadiens are set to battle on Tuesday Night Hockey on NBCSN. With puck drop set for 7:00 p.m. EST on Tuesday, let’s take a look at the best bet for tonight game.
Tampa Bay Lightning Outlook (-150)
The Tampa Bay Lightning head into Tuesday night’s game in the midst of a long road trip early in the season. This will be the fifth game of a six-game trip for the Bolts, who are searching for their second win on the road.
The Lightning won their home opener 5-2 against the Florida Panthers before embarking on this trip. They lost each of the first two games, first to the Panthers 4-3 then 4-3 in overtime to the Carolina Hurricanes.
However, they bounced back with a big 7-3 win against the Toronto Maple Leafs before falling to the lowly Ottawa Senators 4-2.
Now, with two off days behind them, the Lightning look to come out fresh in Montreal.
This will be the second game this season that the Lightning came into rested (with two or more off days) — or third, if you include the home opener. Tampa Bay has played well after a few days of rest, with their 7-3 win in Toronto coming after three off days, and their season-opening win coming five days after their preseason schedule concluded. This is great news for the Lightning.
Tampa Bay is being led by the usual suspects this season with Nikita Kucherov and Steven Stamkos each scoring three goals and adding three assists for six points this season to lead the team. However, a surprising name in Mikhail Sergachev joins them at the top with six assists .
Montreal Canadiens Outlook (+125)
The Montreal Canadiens have had an interesting start to their 2019-20 season.
They played three high-intensity games to begin the season, losing 4-3 in a shootout, winning 6-5 in a shootout (against the rival Toronto Maple Leafs) and a 5-4 overtime loss in Buffalo. After those three games on the road, they lost a tough home opener to the Red Wings before taking down the reigning Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues rather handily to the tune of a 6-3 final score.
The Canadiens are looking to ride that momentum into Tuesday night’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Lightning and Canadiens have had their fair share of recent history, including the Jonathan Drouin for Mikhail Sergachev trade on June 15, 2017. After an up-and-down start to their careers, each player is thriving to begin the 2019-20 season.
Drouin is tied for the Canadiens’ team lead in points with two goals and four assists for six points — Brendan Gallagher carries the same statline through six games. Sergachev, as mentioned above, also has six points — all assists — for the Lightning.
Lightning strike down Canadiens
It’s going to be a good game, but the Lightning at -150 are the bet to make on Tuesday night. The Lightning have the Canadiens’ number as of late, with three wins in four matchups last season, outscoring them 15-10 in the process.
While both teams are coming into the game well-rested, the Lightning have the edge in talent and that should ultimately prevail on Tuesday night.
If you’re just betting for fun and want to follow along, a puck line bet on the Lightning (-1.5 goals at +170) could be worth taking a flier on. They’re a high-scoring team and can tack on goals late in games.
