The Florida Panthers ended the regular season with the best record, but they have yet to win in this second-round series against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Can the Panthers prevent a sweep by taking Game 4? Or will the Lightning strike for the fourth time in a row in this series? Check out our preview below of this Panthers vs. Lightning 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs showdown.
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Betting Preview for the Florida Panthers vs Tampa Bay Lightning NHL Playoffs Round 2 Game 4 on May 23, 2022
Where: Amalie Arena, Tampa
When: Monday, May 23, 2022, 7:00 PM ET
Line: Florida Panthers (+1.5) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (-1.5) – view all 2020-21 NHL lines
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Betting on the Florida Panthers (+1.5)
Regular Season Record: 58-18-6
The Panthers are in real trouble now, which means there’s no other time for this still very talented Florida squad to be at its absolute best than in any game beyond Game 3’s 5-1 loss on the road. While Tampa Bay’s defense has been so stout and effective, the Panthers are just too good to be scoring one goal a game in this series. At some point, the Panthers will have to explode, and that could and should be the case for them in Game 4 this Monday. Aleksander Barkov, the Panthers’ leading goal-getter in the regular season with 39 scored, has yet to find the back of the net in the series, as well as the likes of Jonathan Huberdeau, Sam Bennett, and Carter Verhaeghe – each collecting at least 24 goals before the postseason started. If anything, Florida is leading the matchup with a 56.04 CF%, which means the team is still getting shots.
The Panthers are 19-7 in their last 26 road games.
Betting on the Tampa Bay Lightning (-1.5)
Regular Season Record: 51-23-8
This is why the Lightning shouldn’t be underestimated if that was not made clear enough by the Stanley Cup celebrations they’ve taken the past two seasons. With Andre Vasilevskiy remaining hot between the pipes and the Lightning’s offense humming, there was still the Panthers could do to stop the reigning NHL champions from getting to a 3-0 series lead. Vasilevskiy allowed a goal in the first period of Game 3 and did not look back since, finishing the contest with 34 saves on 35 attempts. Nikita Kucherov had a fantastic performance as well, electrifying the Tampa Bay crowd with a goal and three helpers, giving him the fourth four-point playoff game of his career. The Bolts are locked in and with a game coming up at home, this could really be it for Florida.
The Lightning are 20-8 in their last 28 games in the postseason as a favorite.
Writer’s Prediction
The Lightning win, 3-2.
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