Bruins vs. Lightning NHL Betting Preview

December 4, 2008 by Poolside Rants

NHL Hockey Betting – Boston Bruins @ Tampa Bay Lightning

One of the hottest teams in the NHL will square off against one of the coldest in a sports betting NHL match-up when the Northeast Division leading Boston Bruins (16-4-4) face the Tampa Bay Lightning (6-10-8) in the St. Pete Times Forum tonight.

Boston comes into this game winning six of its last seven for pro hockey bettors and is 5-1 in its last six road games against Tampa Bay. Meanwhile, the Lightning has now lost five in a row under new coach Rick Tocchet and is struggling to stay afloat in the Southeast Division.

Coming into the season, many thought the Bruins would be improved, but few thought that they would be this good. Veteran C Marc Savard has led the young team with both his experience and his performance on the ice. He’s currently the team leader with 30 points (8 G, 22 A) thus far this NHL betting campaign. His performance has been bettered by the ripening of former first round pick RW Phil Kessel, whose 13 goals are also a team high.

The Bruins goaltenders have been fantastic this season and have been an enormous part of the team’s success. Tim Thomas and Manny Fernandez have effectively split time between the pipes, combining for a dazzling 2.04 GAA with a .933 save percentage and two shutouts. Lately, Thomas especially has been money for sports bettors that wager on NHL games to go under the ‘total’, with a 4-1-1 record for under bettors in his last six starts.

Barry Melrose may be gone, but the results have still been the same for the Lightning. Even their stars, RW Martin St. Louis and C Vincent LeCavalier, have been disappointing for Lightning bettors with the two combining for just 38 points through 24 games. These numbers may be good for some but not for St. Louis, a former Art Ross winner and LeCavalier, a former Rocket Richard winner. Prize free agent acquisition LW Ryan Malone has also been less than stellar with just 11 points in 20 games.

‘Over’ bettors have capitalized on the Lightning’s goaltenders struggles this season and it’s 4-0-1 in the Lightning’s last five games. Goaltenders Mike Smith and Olaf Kolzig have been hurtful to NHL bettors with a combined 2.85 GAA and a .917 save percentage. The Lightning has also been especially unlucky in overtime with eight losses after regulation, easily the most in the NHL.

The NHL betting trends for gamblers to know heading into this game include: Boston is a sizzling 14-3 against the NHL betting odds over its last 17 games, Tampa is a poor 14-37 in its last 51 games, and the Bruins are a commanding 24-9-5 in their last 38 games against the Lightning.

NHL lines unsurprisingly have the Bruins as -150 road favorites heading into this game with a ‘total’ of 5.5 goals shaded toward the under at -135 odds.

Whether you want to bet the Bruins or back the underdog Lightning, or the ‘total’, the only place for all your online sports betting action is BetUS Sportsbook.