The Carolina Hurricanes (12-4-1) open a two-game set on the road against the Tampa Bay Lightning (11-4-1) Wednesday for a 5 p.m. ET puck drop at Amalie Arena. Below we analyze the Hurricanes-Lightning odds and lines, with NHL picks and predictions.
Hurricanes at Lightning: Odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 2:34 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Hurricanes +120 (bet $100 to win $120) | Lightning -145 (bet $145 to win $100)
- Against the spread/ATS: Hurricanes +1.5 (-225) | Lightning -1.5 (+180)
- Over/Under: 6 (O: -115 | U: -105)
Hurricanes at Lightning: Projected starting goalies
James Reimer (8-2-0, 3.08 GAA, .896 SV%) at Andrei Vasilevskiy (10-3-1, 2.01 GAA, .931 SV%)
Reimer lost to the Lightning 4-2 in Raleigh, N.C., Monday night, although he wasn’t bad. He allowed three goals on 31 shots at PNC Arena, but the offensive support just wasn’t there. He has allowed three or more goals in eight straight starts, but that’s been masked by the fact he has received 45 goals of support in his 10 starts, or 4.5 goals per game. The two goals the Hurricanes offense provided Monday was a season low, with four goals being the previous low (five times).
Vasilevskiy flashed his Vezina form Monday, and he finally received some help. In his previous two appearances against the Hurricanes, the defending champs did not light the lamp once. He has allowed two or fewer goals in six of his eight starts in February, and he has won each of those outings. When he allowed three or more goals, he has two losses.
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Hurricanes at Lightning: Odds, lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Lightning 5, Hurricanes 3
Money line (ML)
The LIGHTNING (-145) finally were able to solve Carolina goaltending Monday with the 4-2 road win. Now, they’re back home on the Suncoast for two more games with the ‘Canes. Tampa Bay looks to carry over its momentum against Reimer, who is the only one of three Carolina goaltenders without a win or shutout against the Lightning this season.
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Against the spread (ATS)
The LIGHTNING -1.5 (+180) are worth a look on the puck line. They’re at home and expected to face Reimer again, who might be the shakiest of the three Carolina goalies this season despite his misleading record. The Lightning are 49-9 in their past 58 when scoring two or fewer goals in their previous outing. That doesn’t apply here as they scored four last time out, but the trend continued Monday as they were scoreless Saturday in a 4-0 defeat. File that away in your notes to use for later.
Over/Under (O/U)
The OVER 6 (-115) is a good bet. The Over is 4-1-1 across the past six games for the Lightning, while going 5-1-1 in the previous seven for the Hurricanes. The one Under result for both teams was their matchup Saturday, and the push was Monday. They know each other well, and should be able to generate more scoring chances in this one.
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