With the win in Game 1 on the road, the Tampa Bay Lightning are back in a similar position as they were in last year’s Stanley Cup Playoff series against the Florida Panthers. The Lightning have a one-game lead over the Panthers and, the last time out, the Bolts also took Game 2 and went on to win the series against Florida and ultimately won the Stanley Cup. Can the Panthers prevent history from happening this Thursday night?

Nitrobetting is ready to dish out some slick assists to get bets into the back of the net. This time, let’s break down the upcoming Game 2 Eastern Conference semifinal matchup between the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Florida Panthers, along with the latest NHL odds and information about the teams and players involved.

Lightning vs. Panthers Game 2 Information

• When: Thursday, May 19, 2022, 7:00 PM ET
• Where: FLA Live Arena, Sunrise, FL
• TV: TNT, CBC, SN, TVAS
• Radio: 970 WFLA (Lightning) // Altitude Sports Radio 92.5 FM (Panthers)
• Live Stream: NHL Live
• NHL Betting Odds: Lightning (+149) / Panthers (-172)

READ MORE: Blues vs. Avalanche Game 2 Stanley Cup Playoffs Odds and Preview – May 19th, 2022

Why Bet on the Tampa Bay Lightning?

An impressive 4-1 win in Game 1 Tuesday over the Florida Panthers have the Tampa Bay Lightning on a roll. The reigning Stanley Cup champions are peaking in the right moment as they got one over the team with the best record in the league during the regular season with relative ease.

Tampa Bay got goals from veteran standouts Nikita Kucherov and Corey Perry, as well as Ross Colton and Pierre-edouard Bellemare, as the the team exhibited its depth on the attack. But above all else, it was none other than prolific goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy who shut down the Panthers’ own offense en route to another victory.

Vasilevskiy denied 33 of Florida’s 34 shots in Game 1. Over his past three outings, the defending Conn Smythe Trophy winner has 94 saves in 99 shots faced (.949 SV%), proving that for the rest of the Eastern Conference to beat the Bolts, they’ll have to go through Vasilevskiy’s superior defensive postseason performances first.

Why Bet on the Florida Panthers?

It’s been another slow start in a playoff series for the Florida Panthers, who’ve now lost seven consecutive postseason series openers. The reigning Presidents’ Trophy winners had no answers for Tampa Bay’s onslaught in Game 1 and must bounce back this Thursday night to prevent falling into a huge two-game deficit and with home-ice advantage being a non-factor moving forward.

As a silver lining of sorts, Florida did get on the scoreboard before Tampa Bay did in Game 1, with Anthony Duclair hitting a quick wrist shot some 14 minutes into the first period. Unfortunately, the Panthers and their league-best offense from the regular season (4.11 goals per game) was non-existent for the remainder of the contest.

It also doesn’t help that goalie Sergei Bobrovsky has been quite a sieve in his recent outings. Bobrovsky has allowed an average of 3.4 goals over his last five starts, meaning that the Panthers’ offense must be ready to bail out their former two-time Vezina Trophy winner in Thursday’s rematch before the series gets out of hand.

Lightning vs. Panthers Betting Trends

• The Lightning are 4-5 in their last nine road playoff games.
• The Bolts are 5-4 in their last nine outings as underdogs.
• The totals went over in five of Tampa Bay’s last seven games in general.
• The Panthers are 4-4 at home in their last eight games against the Lightning.
• The Panthers are 13-3 in their last 16 homestands.
• The totals went under in four of Florida’s last six home games.

Lightning vs. Panthers Expert Betting Predictions

It’s really hard to bet against the reigning champs right now with how well Vasilevskiy is playing right now. Then again, it also wouldn’t be wise to count out the Panthers, especially if they get their prolific attack going this Thursday. Florida’s recent track record at home, despite the Game 1 defeat, is still exceptional, which would explain why the Panthers are still favored to win and tie the series up at one game apiece as we speak.

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*All odds stated are subject to change without prior notice.