Bolts by the Bay
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Tampa Bay Lightning at Detroit Red Wings Preview

By Austin Hart

Dec 21, 2022; Detroit, Michigan, USA; The puck heads for the net after a shot by Tampa Bay Lightning left wing Alex Kilhorn (17) during the first period at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brian Bradshaw Sevald-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 21, 2022; Detroit, Michigan, USA; The puck heads for the net after a shot by Tampa Bay Lightning left wing Alex Kilhorn (17) during the first period at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brian Bradshaw Sevald-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Tampa Bay Lightning (36-17-4) head out on the road again to square off against the Detroit Red Wings (28-21-8) tonight at 8:00 p.m. ET. FanDuel has odds set at -144 for the Bolts on the money line and an over/under at 6.5.

Tampa Bay is coming off of a tough 6-5 loss in overtime at home two nights ago. The Buffalo Sabres gave the Lightning quite a battle all night with goals aplenty, including a hat trick from Buffalo’s Tage Thompson and the short-handed OT winner by Ilya Lyubushkin. Clearly, Tampa Bay’s defense was nowhere near the standard of the Bolts this year, leaving too many opportunities for the Sabres. The good news is that the Lightning were able to still get a point in the standings for taking the game to overtime, but bad news? They face another hungry team tonight in the Detroit Red Wings who also find themselves in the thick of an intense wild card race.

The Lightning will also be without defenseman Erik Cernak tonight and tomorrow after he was suspended for two games for Elbowing Buffalo’s Kyle Okposo.

The Red Wings have been extremely hot during the month of February with an outstanding record of 7-2-0.  Detroit has also been on a three-game home win streak as they welcome in the Lightning tonight. In terms of the division, however, Detroit has been less than stellar against rivals, going 6-8-2 against Atlantic division opponents. The Bolts will surely need to contain C Dylan Larkin in this matchup, as he’s been on a roll in his past 10 games with seven goals and seven assists.

Detroit also seems to have Tampa Bay’s number this season with a 2-0 record against them already. The first game back on December 6th at Amalie Arena ended up as a 4-2 win for the Red Wings thanks in large part to Ville Husso’s 44 save performance. The Lightning would fall once again to Detroit later in the month in Michigan by a score of 7-4. Larkin netted two for the Red Wings in that effort as they snapped a six-game losing streak with the win.

INJURIES: No injuries for Tampa Bay.

Red Wings LW Lucas Raymond is considered day-to-day while D Mark Pysyk remains on IR.

Odds (Courtesy of FanDuel): TBL -144 ML/DET +118 ML, O 6.5 +106/U 6.5 -130

Where to watch: Bally Sports Sun, NHL Power Play, ESPN+

Where to listen: Lightning Radio 24/7, 102.5 MHz-FM

Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI

February 25, 2023, 8:00 p.m. ET

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