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Lightning vs Golden Knights Odds, Predictions and Best NHL Pick for Tuesday, December 21st

George Nassios

by George Nassios in NHL Hockey

Updated Dec 20, 2021 · 4:43 PM PST

Golden Knights players celebrate
Vegas Golden Knights' Zach Whitecloud (2), Max Pacioretty (67), Nicolas Roy (10) and Brayden McNabb (3) celebrate with goalie Robin Lehner (90) during an NHL hockey game against the New York Islanders, Sunday, Dec. 19, 2021, in Elmont, N.Y. (AP Photo/John Munson)
  • The Tampa Bay Lightning visit the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday, December 21st
  • The Golden Knights are on a season high 5-game winning streak
  • Read below for Lightning vs Golden Knights odds, predictions and best NHL pick

Two of the hottest teams in the NHL square off in Las Vegas on Tuesday night, when the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning visit the Vegas Golden Knights. The puck will drop shortly after 10pm ET at T-Mobile Arena.

Both teams sit in first place in their respective divisions and there is little to separate the two so Vegas is being listed as -125 home favorites on the NHL betting line with the crowd support behind them.

Let’s take a look at the Lightning vs Golden Knights odds and offer you SBD’s NHL best bet for this game.

Lightning vs Golden Knights Odds

Game Time Team Puck Line Total Moneyline
10:00pm ET Tampa Bay Lightning +1.5 (-245) O 5.5 (-120) +104
December 21st, 2021 Vegas Golden Knights -1.5 (+190) U 5.5 (-103) -125

Odds as of December 20th at Barstool Sportsbook.

Tampa Good Value in NHL Odds Despite Injuries

Tampa hasn’t had many players miss games due to COVID this season, like plenty of other teams, but they’ve been without both Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point for over a month now and somehow still find themselves atop the Atlantic Division.

The Lightning have the 2nd-best return on investment when placing bets on them on the moneyline so far this year. Only the Carolina Hurricanes have been returning more dollars on moneyline bets.

Steven Stamkos has stepped up in the absence of his superstar teammates and heading into Monday night’s NHL action, he sat fifth in the league in points.

Lightning vs Golden Knights Betting Trends

Vegas has also been one of the best moneyline bets in the NHL odds this season and they’ve also been a great team to bet the over on, as they’ve been filling the net with a return of investment of almost 22% when you bet the over.

They’ve hit the over in seven of 10 games this month, spurred by the return of sniper Max Pacioretty, who has cooled down a bit after a torrid start to December. If the Vegas winger hadn’t missed so much time due to injury, he’d probably be a top candidate in the Rocket Richard Trophy odds.

NHL Goals Per Game Leaders (Min. 10 Games Played)

Player Goals Per Game Goals Games Played
Max Pacioretty (VGK) 0.86 12 14
Leon Draisaitl (EDM) 0.79 23 29
Auston Matthews (TOR) 0.74 20 27
Alexander Ovechkin (WSH) 0.71 22 31

The 33-year-old is scoreless in three games after a seven-game goal scoring streak and he’ll have a tough task burying one on Tuesday against the man who is the favorite in the Vezina Trophy odds, Tampa’s Andrei Vasilevskiy.

Lightning and Golden Knights Top Contenders

Both teams were expected to be contenders this year and while they’ve had their ups and downs, both remain top-5 contenders in the Stanley Cup odds at this point in the season.

With Point and Kucherov expected to return to the lineup in the new year, expect Tampa’s odds to shoot up even more as the season progresses.

Tampa should have a bit of an edge in this one because they’ll be rested. Their scheduled contest against Colorado on Saturday was postponed due to COVID-19. Meanwhile, Vegas has had a very busy month as this will be their eighth game in 14 days. It hasn’t seemed to bother them as they lead the league in wins and points in December.

Lightning vs Golden Knights Recent Results

Date Home-Away Moneyline Puck Line Over/Under
02/20/2020 VGK 5 – TB 3 VGK VGK Over
02/04/2020 TB 4 – VGK 2 TB TB Push
02/05/2019 TB 2 – VGK 3 (SO) VGK VGK Under
10/26/2018 VGK 2 – TB 3 TB VGK Under
01/18/2018 TB 1 – VGK 4 VGK VGK Under

Vegas has actually gotten the better of Tampa in the six all-time meetings between the two, although they haven’t met in almost two years. Needless to say, with both teams coming in red hot, this will be one that a lot of hockey fans will be excited to watch.

Lightning vs Golden Knights Pick

This is a tough one to choose in the NHL odds, in a game featuring two of the hottest teams in the league heading into the Christmas break. I think Vasilevskiy could play a major role in this one and goaltending is one of the spots where Tampa has a definitive advantage.

In addition, with five days in between games, the Lightning should hold an edge over a Vegas squad that just got back from a four-game East Coast road trip. It’s not often you can get value when betting on the Lightning, so bet the Tampa moneyline at +104 at Barstool Sportsbook.

Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning Moneyline (+104)

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