Florida Panthers vs Tampa Bay Lightning

A pair of defensive dynamos clash in Game 2 of this Eastern Conference series. Florida was seventh during the regular season in goals given up (2.72 per game), ninth in save percentage (.905), and 10th in penalty killing. Florida took Game 1, allowing just two goals, and they are on an 18-8 run UNDER the total. Tampa Bay was fourth in goals given up (2.63 per game), second in save percentage (.913), and sixth in penalty killing. Look for a better defensive effort from the Bolts as they try to salvage a split in these home games. Play Florida/Tampa Bay UNDER the total. 

Florida comes into the series after losing seven of its past 10 games, including 5-1 to the Lightning in the regular-season finale. Both teams have plenty of playoff experience and Tampa Bay will have Andrei Vasilevskiy in net and he is 37-20-5 this seasom. Vasilevskiy has a 2.17 goals-against average and a .921 save percentage with six shutouts. The Lightning are out to avenge last year's first-round playoff loss to the Panthers. Tampa Bay won 29 of 41 home games this season and it led the league with 3.56 goals per game. The Lightning have gone OVER five of its past six games and its past seven home games have gone OVER. Florida has gone OVER four of five when playing on the road against Tampa Bay. Take the Lightning and the OVER.

Florida has won three in a row and eight of 10, allowing only nine goals in its past six games. The Panthers defeated Calgary 3-0 on Saturday as Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 23 shots. He is confirmed for this game with a 25-13-2 record and a 2.73 goals-against average with three shutouts this season. Florida will try to snap Tampa Bay's eight-game win streak after splitting the first two meetings this season, and the Panthers have won nine of the past 12 meetings. Florida has won seven of its eight home games, and 12 of the past 18 meetings have gone UNDER. The Panthers are on a 4-2 UNDER run, and the Lightning have stayed UNDER four in a row. The UNDER is 5-1-1 in Tampa Bay's past seven games as an underdog. The Lightning have lost 15 of 29 road games. Take the Panthers and the UNDER.

Tampa Bay has a winning road record and a +32 goal differential, the second-best in the Eastern Conference and third-best in the NHL. They're on an 11-6 run, looking to bounce back after losing to Florida yesterday, 4-2. The defense is 13th in goals allowed and 11th in save percentage (.904) on a 9-7-1 run UNDER the total. This is the third game in eight days for the Lightning, while Florida is playing its fifth game in eight days. They're on a 6-2 run UNDER the total, and this is a strong situational spot for the talented underdog in a defensive duel. Play Tampa Bay + UNDER the total.