Evgeni Malkin #71 and Phil Kessel #81 of the Pittsburgh Penguins react after Kessel scored in the first period during the game against the New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center on November 13, 2018 in Newark, New Jersey.

OVER Has Cashed in Six Straight Meetings Between Lightning and Penguins

Puck bettors have become accustomed to seeing the Tampa Bay Lightning light up scoreboards over the years, but it’s been opposing teams who’ve been doing a better job of getting on the board first lately. The Bolts, who’ve given up the first goal in 10 of 18 contests, are on a two-game losing streak and continue a four-game road trip in Pittsburgh on Thursday. Sportsbooks opened the Penguins as -105 home favorites with a total of 6.

SHARK BITES
  • The Lightning are 2-6 SU in their last eight games vs the Penguins.
  • The Penguins are 1-6 SU and 2-5 ATS in their last seven games.
  • The total has gone OVER in the Lightning’s last six games vs the Penguins (avg. combined score: 7.67).

Lightning vs Penguins Game Center

Lightning have had a major edge in this series lately

Tampa Bay surrendered the first goal in each of its past three games and is coming off consecutive setbacks to the Ottawa Senators and Buffalo Sabres. The Lightning had a 30-19 edge in shots against the Sabres but still managed to fall to Buffalo 2-1 in the opener of the road trek. In the last eight meetings between the Penguins and Lightning, including the playoffs, Tampa is 2-6 SU.

The Penguins have endured plenty of struggles of their own lately, as Pittsburgh enters tonight’s matchup with a 1-5-1 record in its last seven contests. The Pens have registered only 13 goals during the slump, with four of those tallies coming in the lone win against Arizona. Center Evgeni Malkin leads the team with 21 points but has notched only one in the last five games with seven shots and a minus-4 rating. Sidney Crosby will miss tonight's game due to an upper-body injury and could be out at least a week.

OVERs have been cashing at a rapid rate

When the Lightning and Penguins get together, high-scoring affairs tend to follow. In the past six meetings between the Eastern Conference clubs, the OVER is 6-0, with an average combined score of 7.7 goals. Pittsburgh’s inability to find the back of the net on a consistent basis makes this trend look a little less appealing, though.

The good news for Bolts bettors is their ability to bounce back after dropping multiple games. In Tampa Bay’s past seven games after coming off consecutive losses, it’s 6-1 SU. The Lightning are also 5-2 SU in their previous seven as road favorites, but are only 1-10 on the puckline in their past 11 vs squads with losing records.

Murray tabbed as the starter for the Penguins

Matt Murray is listed as the probable starter for the Penguins tonight. Murray (4-4-1, 3.86 goals-against average, .886 save percentage) hasn't won since beating Calgary on October 25, falling to New Jersey, Toronto, and the New York Islanders twice in that span.

On Thursday, it was announced Tampa Bay starting goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy had a fractured foot and will miss an extended period of time. Louis Domingue will start in his place for the time being. Domingue (3-2-0, 3.42 GAA, .887 SV%) will be between the pipes tonight.
The Lightning are 2-6 SU in their last eight games vs the Penguins. The Penguins are 1-6 SU and 2-5 ATS in their last seven games.home The total has gone OVER in the Lightning’s last six games vs the Penguins (avg. combined score: 7.67).
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