Panthers Favored to Strike Early Versus Lightning
Despite Recent Playoff History, the Lightning vs Panthers Odds Favors Florida in First-Round Series
Star Defensemen Hedman and Ekblad Are Ailing
The Florida Panthers made a surprising run to the Stanley Cup Final a season ago, thanks to an upset of the record-breaking Boston Bruins in the first round.
But the Panthers won’t be sneaking up on anybody with the Lightning vs Panthers betting odds favoring Florida after ending the regular season with four straight wins to capture the Atlantic Division title.
This is the third time the Lightning and Panthers will meet in the playoffs in the last four years. Tampa Bay won the previous two series including a four-game sweep in 2022.
The Lightning was favored in six of the last 10 playoff games but that won’t be the case this time. The road team won all three games between Tampa Bay and Florida during the regular season.
The NHL betting lines have Florida priced at -165 to win the series opener compared to +145 odds for Tampa Bay. Florida is at +160 to cover against the puck line (ATS) as the 1.5-goal favorite with -180 odds for the Lightning to cover as the underdog.
The Panthers have -195 odds to win the series with the Lightning at +170 in the series odds.
Florida is tied for third at +800 in the Stanley Cup betting odds with Tampa Bay 12th at +2200 in the championship odds.
Game 1
Lightning vs Panthers 
Records: Tampa Bay Lightning (45-29-8), Florida Panthers (52-24-6)
Day, Time:
Location: Amerant Bank Arena, Sunrise, Florida
Streaming: ESPN
Dynamic Duo Leading the Lightning
Four of the seven NHL teams that have had at least seven combined goals scored per game in April failed to qualify for the playoffs. One of the teams that got a spot in the Stanley Cup bracket is Tampa Bay.
The Lightning is fourth in the NHL in goals per game (second to Winnipeg among playoff teams) with 3.78 goals per contest even though the Lightning rank eighth of the 16 playoff teams in power-play percentage during that time.
Tampa Bay has been leaning on the high-scoring duo of Nikita Kucherov and Steven Stamkos. Stamkos leads the NHL with 10 goals in April while Kucherov won his second scoring title after topping the NHL with 18 points in nine NHL games played in April. That could factor into the Lightning vs Panthers betting odds.
Just 17 of Tampa Bay’s 41 road games went under the total during the regular season.
Ready to Seal the Deal?
Getting to the Stanley Cup Final only to lose has served as motivation for the Panthers.
Unlike last season, when Florida needed to finish strong to get into the playoffs, the four-game winning streak for the Panthers to end the regular season was all about getting ready for another playoff run.
In Florida’s last six games, the Panthers have allowed just seven goals with four of the last five games having five or fewer combined goals scored.
The Panthers’ late charge allowed them to finish the regular season with the best goal differential in the NHL. Keep that in mind when it comes to the Lightning vs Panthers betting odds.
The total went under in four of Florida’s last five games against Atlantic Division teams.
Lightning vs Panthers Injury Update
Keep an eye on the status of star defenseman Victor Hedman after he missed the regular-season finale for the Lightning. Forwards Luke Glendening and Tyler Motte are also questionable. Forward Logan Brown and Mikhail Sergachev are out.
For Florida, defenseman Aaron Ekblad is expected to play in the series opener while defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson is questionable.
Lightning vs Panthers Betting Preview
This is not going to be a series for the faint of heart as Florida led the NHL with an average of 28.4 hits per 60 minutes with Tampa Bay coming in just under 24 hits per game. Don’t be surprised to see these numbers jump in this series.
Florida will look to get Kucherov and Stamkos off their game with both teams having their top defensemen coming into the series nursing NHL injuries so they will be hit early and often.
The Panthers finished 12 points ahead of Tampa Bay in the NHL standings and that can’t be ignored heading into this series. And while the Panthers finished third in the Eastern Conference with 26 home wins, they were just 14-27 ATS in those games.
Florida has won 12 of its last 17 NHL games as the home favorite but has covered in just six of those games. Just four of those games went over the total.
Tampa Bay is 6-8-1 in its last 15 games as the road underdog but the Lighting has covered the puck line in five straight games as the road ‘dog. Four of those matchups finished over the total.
Tampa Bay has won 10 of its last 14 games. The Lightning will likely need to win one of the first two games on the road to put pressure on the Panthers.
Eight of the last 11 games between the teams went under the total and the Panthers are just fine in low-scoring affairs.
When looking at the National Hockey League schedule, Florida has won its last five home games and will be favored to jump out on top in this series.
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