The Tampa Bay Lightning (24-6-2) wrap up a two-game set on the road against the Dallas Stars (10-11-8) on Thursday with an 8:30 p.m. ET puck drop at American Airlines Center. Below, we analyze the Lightning-Stars odds and lines, with NHL picks and predictions.
Lightning at Stars: Odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 7:40 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Lightning -175 (bet $175 to win $100) | Stars +150 (bet $100 to win $150)
- Against the spread/ATS: Lightning -1.5 (+165) | Stars +1.5 (-200)
- Over/Under: 5.5 (O: +110 | U: -135)
Lightning at Stars: Projected starting goalies
Andrei Vasilevskiy (21-3-1, 1.83 GAA, .933 SV%, 3 SO) vs. Anton Khudobin (6-9-2, 2.45 GAA, .910 SV%, 3 SO)
Vasilevskiy is on a 12-game win streak, and he was very impressive in the front end of the back-to-back, posting 16 saves in the 2-1 win. He has not lost since Feb. 20 in Carolina, and he has three shutouts along the way, including two against Dallas.
Khudobin is going to be tired of seeing the Lightning and Vasilevskiy. He is 0-3-0 with a 3.04 GAA and .867 SV in three starts against Tampa Bay. He has sparkled at home, posting a 2.17 GAA And .905 SV% with one of his three shutouts in 10 appearances, although he has a 4-5-1 record.
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Lightning at Stars: Odds, lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Lightning 3, Stars 2
Money line (ML)
The LIGHTNING (-175) are rather moderate favorites on the road in this Stanley Cup Finals rematch, but the books aren’t stupid. Tampa Bay has won five straight in this series, while winning six in a row in the Metroplex. The road team has cashed in seven of the past eight in this series, too. Tampa Bay is pricey, but no one else is playing better in the crease than Vasilevskiy.
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Against the spread (ATS)
The Lightning -1.5 (+165) are a tempting play since they’re so red hot, but they’re coming off a 2-1 win in the front end of the double dip. Three of their past seven victories have been one-goal games, so it’s a good idea to play it safe and just play the money line. PASS.
Over/Under (O/U)
UNDER 5.5 (-135) easily connected in Tuesday’s battle with a total of just three goals. The Under is 3-1-1 in the previous five meetings in this series, too. In fact, if you look to the win/total section, playing LIGHTNING TO WIN AND UNDER 4.5 GOALS (+360) is too tempting to pass up, as you can more than triple up.
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