Lightning vs Panthers Odds, Pick & Prediction (Oct 21)

• The Tampa Bay Lightning have emerged as slim favorites in Friday’s road date with the Florida Panthers
• The Lightning have lost three of their first four games while Florida has opened its season on a 3-1-0 run
• Read on for all the odds and trends ahead of Friday night’s matchup at FLA Live Arena

The Tampa Bay Lightning will be looking to snap out of an early-season funk when they visit the cross-state rival Florida Panthers on Friday. The Lightning have struggled to generate offense during a shaky 1-3-0 start, while the Panthers have surged to the top of the Atlantic Division standings while winning three of their first four contests.

Start time is set for 7:30pm ET at FLA Live Arena, with all the action televised on ESPN and Hulu.

Despite enduring a disappointing start to their schedule, the Lightning have emerged as narrow -115 road favorites in the Friday night NHL odds.

Lightning vs Panthers Odds

Odds as of October 21st at Caesars Sportsbook.

The Panthers lag as strong -105 underdogs, while the total is pegged at 6.5, with the OVER favored with -130 odds.

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Lightning vs Panthers Recent History

Friday night’s matchup marks the first of four regular-season meetings between these Atlantic Division rivals. These two teams split four contests last season before the Lightning stormed to a dominating four-game sweep of Florida in second-round playoff action.

Overall, Tampa Bay has also held the edge in head-to-head action during the regular season, winning five of their past seven dates with the Panthers, including three of four on the road. All but one of their past seven tilts have been settled by multi-goal margins. However, that has failed to produce consistent results in totals betting, where the OVER has gone 3-3-1 over that stretch.

Tampa Bay Lightning Betting Outlook

Goals have come at a premium for the Lightning in the early going, with the team potting two or fewer markers in each of their three losses to date, and just 10 total goals through their first four outings. One notable exception has been Steven Stamkos. The Lightning captain has stormed out of the gate, potting six goals including four power-play markers, and adding an assist in four appearances.

Steven Stamkos said “I’m still kind of pissed off about how last year ended” and he’s taking his anger out on everyone this year pic.twitter.com/mEhsnG4Un1

— Andrew Weiss (@WeissHockeyTalk) October 15, 2022

Stamkos has racked up an impressive nine goals and 11 assists while getting on the scoresheet in 12 of his past 13 trips to Florida, he should not be overlooked on the player props to pick up at least a point on Friday night.

The art of the draw to start the season has been a little sketchy for #GoBolts when it comes to winning faceoffs, they are acutely aware of it even just a week into the season #TBLightning https://t.co/G0BICoMrq6 pic.twitter.com/fiw7Z5Zx7K

— Lightning Insider (@Erik_Erlendsson) October 18, 2022

Unfortunately for the Lightning, their other big guns have remained silent, with Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point, Alex Killorn, and Victor Hedman combining to score just one total goal to date. While the Lightning deserved a better fate last time out than a 3-2 loss to Philadelphia while outshooting the Flyers by a wide 38-24 margin, they have not done themselves any favors in the faceoff circle, where they have won just 41.2% of draws.

Florida Panthers Betting Outlook

While the Lightning have struggled to find their offensive mojo, the Panthers have marched to wins in three of their first four contests on the strength of steady third-period performances. The Panthers have spotted opponents early leads in two of their first four contests, and in the two games where they did score first, the club had to rebound in the third period after squandering the early advantage. Indeed, Florida has seen six of its 14 goals to date come in the final frame.

Matthew Tkachuk has points in all four games since joining the Panthers (2-4-6).

— David Dwork (@DavidDwork) October 20, 2022

Matthew Tkachuk has led the charge in his Florida debut, tallying two goals and four assists through four games. Tkachuk also sits among the early-season leaders with 18 shots on goal, and has been a fixture, averaging over 5:40 of ice time with the extra man.

The Panthers have placed Aaron Ekblad on LTIR pic.twitter.com/hjcXFio29P

— Spittin' Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) October 19, 2022

Tkachuk’s presence on the power play has yet to generate results. The Panthers have converted a meager 11.1% of their power play opportunities so far this season, with both their PP goals coming in last weekend’s 4-3 win in Buffalo. The loss of injured rearguard Aaron Ekblad indefinitely does not help matters. In addition to leading the club in ice time last season, Ekblad also contributed three goals and 17 helpers with the man advantage last season.

Panthers vs Lightning Prediction

While neither of these teams have dominated offensively in the early going, the floodgates could open at anytime, and with Florida averaging an impressive 5.5 goals per game over their past four regular season home dates with Tampa Bay, they are deserving of a value bet, particularly while pegged as underdogs.

The Picks: Panthers (-105); OVER 6.5 (-130)