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The Sunshine State rivalry between the Tampa Bay Lighting and the Florida Panthers will heat up tonight with Game 1 of their second-round playoff series taking place at 7 p.m. ET in Sunrise, FL.
Florida was tested in round-one but ultimately passed, downing the Washington Capitals in six games to win the franchise’s first playoff series since 1996. The President’s Trophy winners found themselves down 2-1 midway through the series and promptly rattled off three straight victories to close it out. The most impressive effort came in Game 5, where they erased a 3-0 deficit in the second period to win 5-3. Carter Verhaeghe was the MVP for the Panthers with six goals and 12 points in the series.
Tampa Bay displayed why its extremely difficult to put down a champion in round one by going the distance and taking out the Toronto Maple Leafs in seven games. Trailing 3-2 with their backs against the wall in the series, the Lightning took the Leafs to overtime in Game 6 where a late Brayden Point goal officially tied the series 3-3 and sent it back to Canada. In front of a hostile Toronto crowd for Game 7, the two-time defending champs put on the clamps and squeezed out a 2-1 victory to keep their three-peat hopes alive for another round.
All odds come courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
Lightning vs. Panthers: Game 1 prediction
Lightning: +140
Panthers: -160
Florida will have an urgency to get off to a fast start in this series and will try to take advantage of Tampa Bay coming off a tiring seven-game series. Brayden Point being doubtful will also have an impact on the champs’ chances on the road, so lean with the home team here.
Pick: Panthers -160
Over/Under: 7
Sergei Bobrovsky was excellent in the net for Florida in round one while Andrei Vasilevskiy came through for Tampa Bay when it mattered the most. Expect both goalies to keep the total under 7.
Pick: Under 7
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