Bolts by the Bay
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Tampa Bay Lightning at New York Rangers Preview

By Austin Hart

Oct 11, 2022; New York, New York, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning right wing Nikita Kucherov (86) and New York Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba (8) battle for the puck during the second period at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Danny Wild-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 11, 2022; New York, New York, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning right wing Nikita Kucherov (86) and New York Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba (8) battle for the puck during the second period at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Danny Wild-USA TODAY Sports /
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In the first game of a back-to-back slated for tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET, the Tampa Bay Lightning (45-26-6) are on the road to face the New York Rangers (45-21-11). FanDuel has this game at almost a pick ’em, with both the Lightning and Rangers at -105 and -115 money lines respectively.

Tampa Bay blasted the New York Islanders back on Saturday with a 5-0 win for Andrei Vasilevskiy’s second shutout in his past thtee games. Five different players netted goals for the Lightning, including two within less than 2 minutes of each other from Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov. The Bolts have now won three straight games and are looking like they are heating up right in time for the playoffs. They were able to finally clinch a postseason berth on Saturday as well with their win, locking them into a first-round playoff series with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

New York has been pretty hot as of late as well, going 7-2-1 in their last 10 games and averaging almost 4 goals a game. They’ve also been able to clinch a postseason spot with 101 points in the Metropolitan division, only a handful behind the New Jersey Devils and Carolina Hurricanes. New York’s latest win came over the Washington Capitals on Sunday by a score of 5-2. Artemi Panarin dished out three assists as he continues to stand out this season as the current points and assists leader on the team. He’ll be a focal point of the offense along with Mika Zibanejad that Tampa Bay will have to contain.

The Rangers were able to secure a victory over the Bolts 3-1 in New York back on opening night, but the Lightning got revenge with a 2-1 shootout win on December 29th. It has  definitely been a series of incredible goaltending between Vasilevskiy and Igor Shesterkin, and the rubber match will be decided tonight for the season series.

INJURIES: No injuries for the Lightning.

Rangers D Ryan Lindgren is considered day-to-day.

Odds (Courtesy of FanDuel): TBL -105 ML/NYR -114 ML, O 6.5 +112/U 6.5 -138

Where to watch: TNT

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

Madison Square Garden, New York, NY

April 5, 2023, 7:30 p.m. ET

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