Rangers vs Lightning Series Odds, Schedule, and Pick

• The Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Rangers meet in the NHL Eastern Conference Final
• The Bolts have opened as heavy favorites in the Rangers vs Lightning series odds
• Read below for Rangers vs Lightning series odds, schedule, and pick

The Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Rangers are set to faceoff in the 2022 NHL Eastern Conference Final. The Rangers hold home-ice advantage for the best-of-seven series beginning Wednesday.

Tampa Bay has opened as -182 favorites in the Rangers vs Lightning series odds. New York is available as +155 underdogs in a matchup that will feature two of the NHL’s best goalies.

Let’s take a look at the Rangers vs Lightning odds and offer you our betting pick for the series.

Rangers vs Lightning Series Odds

Odds as of May 31st at Barstool Sportsbook.

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Tampa Bay’s -182 series price gives them 65% implied probability to defeat the Rangers. New York’s +155 moneyline price means they have 39% implied probability to advance.

Rangers vs Lightning Series Schedule

Rangers vs Lightning gets underway Wednesday with a matchup at Madison Square Garden. The series will be played on alternating days until a two-day break between Games 6 & 7. ESPN and Sportsnet are the broadcast networks for Rangers vs Lightning.

*If necessary.

The earliest the Rangers vs Lightning series could end is Tuesday, June 7th, while the last possible date of the series is Tuesday, June 14th.

Bolts Favored in Rangers vs Lightning Odds

The Tampa Bay Lightning are favored to defeat the New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference Final odds. The Bolts are the two-time defending Cup champs and hold a major rest advantage over the Rangers entering Round 3.

Tampa Bay swept the Florida Panthers in four games during Round 2 and haven’t played a game since May 23rd. Nikita Kucherov paces the Lightning in postseason scoring with 15 points, while Victor Hedman is second with 10 points.

Corey Perry got the goal but NIKITA KUCHEROV OH MY! 🤮#StanleyCup | #GoBolts pic.twitter.com/z4vnLLQX9l

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) May 18, 2022

The Bolts remain without forward Brayden Point, who suffered a lower-body injury in Round 1 versus Toronto. The latest Brayden Point injury update is that the speedy forward is questionable for Game 1 vs NYR.

New York is listed as moneyline underdogs in the NHL odds despite holding home-ice advantage in the series. The Rangers required seven games to defeat the Carolina Hurricanes in Round 2 after also playing a Game 7 the previous round.

Mika Zibanejad leads New York in postseason scoring with 19 points, while Adam Fox is second with 18 points. The Rangers have been doubted throughout the playoffs and enter the ECF with the longest Stanley Cup odds of the remaining four teams.

Shesterkin vs Vasilevskiy Goalie Matchup

The biggest storyline entering the Eastern Conference Final is the goalie matchup between Rangers’ Igor Shesterkin and Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy. Both netminders are among the league’s best at their position and regular contenders in the Vezina odds.

Shesterkin vs Vasilevskiy Playoff Stats

The Shesterkin vs Vasilevskiy stats shows that both teams may have difficulty lighting the lamp in this series. Igor has been the busier of the two, but Vasi holds a slight edge in every major statistic aside from goals saved above average.

Something to note before betting on Rangers vs Lighting is that Vasilevskiy has been otherworldly in elimination games. Vasilevskiy has posted a shutout in six of his past seven series-clinching games and allowed just a single goal in the other contest.

New York vs Tampa Bay Head-to-Head History

The Rangers and Lightning meet in the Eastern Conference Final after playing each other three times during the regular season. New York won all three regular-season meetings versus Tampa Bay, although one of the games went to a shootout.

Much like he’s been all year, Shesterkin was the difference against the Lightning this season. The Russian netminder posted a ridiculous .958 save percentage in three games versus the Bolts as his team was outshot in each meeting.

The only time the Rangers and Lightning have met in the playoffs was the 2015 Eastern Conference Final where the Bolts prevailed in seven games to advance onto the Cup Final. Vasilevskiy was Tampa Bay’s backup goalie in the series.

Rangers vs Lightning Series Pick

The Rangers are thriving in the underdog role but have yet to face a team of Tampa Bay’s caliber. In each of New York’s previous two playoff series, they faced a team’s second or third-string goalie due to an injury to the starter.

So far this postseason, the Rangers have played:

-Two backup goaltenders.
-Two third-string goaltenders.
-One starter with a busted foot.

Andrei Vasilevskiy will be of a different quality.

— Seth Rorabaugh (@SethRorabaugh) May 31, 2022

Vasilevskiy and the Bolts haven’t lost a playoff series since 2019 and are inching towards a potential historic threepeat. New York has exceeded expectations so far, but their 45.5 Corsi % this postseason illustrates how much they depend on Shesterkin.

With New York finally facing an elite goaltender similar in quality to Shesterkin, their weaknesses are likely to get exposed. Look for Tampa to utilize their distinct rest advantage and keep their magical run going with a series win over the Rangers.

Pick: Lightning ML (-182)