Bruins-Lightning Game 1 Preview, Betting Lines & Predictions

The Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning kick off their second round series Sunday night at 8 p.m.

According to the online sports book Betonline.ag the Lightning are favored by a goal and a half but the money line sits at -105 odds for both teams to win. The over/under sits at 5 1/2.

Both teams come into the second round after taking care of their first round series in five games. The Lightning handled the Columbus Blue Jackets in five games—with two games going into overtime, including a 5OT marathon in Game 1. The Bruins on the other hand took down the Carolina Hurricanes to get here.

Tampa Bay will be without Steven Stamkos for Game 1. The Lightning center missed all of the first round with an injury and is still unavailable to start this series.

With no Stamkos, Tampa Bay will continue to lean on the likes of Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point to carry their offense.

With Tuukka Rask having opted out, Boston will once again start Jaroslav Halak in net. The Bruins goaltender has been sharp this season with a 2.55 goals against average—which has continued into the playoffs, sporting a 2.29 average in the postseason.

The Bruins—and NHL’s—top goal scorer, David Pastrnak returned to Boston’s lineup for their series finale versus the Hurricanes. The winger will take his spot on the top line alongside Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand in Game 1.

Prediction

Tampa Bay appeared to exorcise its playoff demons with its win over Columbus in the first round. The Lightning seem to be a team on a mission and are one of the league’s most talented top to bottom. A 3-1 regular season record over the President’s Trophy-winning Bruins helps as well. Take the Lightning on the money line.

The Bruins might’ve struggled against Tampa Bay during the regular season, but the games were closely contested, expect the Bruins to cover at -275.

While Boston’s offense has been largely dormant since the NHL’s restart, they still possess the scoring acumen to hang a crooked number. Tampa Bay feature’s a similarly scary forward group. Even with a pair of strong goaltenders in net, take the over on 5 1/2 goals.

Lightning 4 Bruins 3