The Tampa Bay Lightning (32-16-2) and the Colorado Avalanche (27-18-4) are set for a Stanley Cup Finals rematch in the NHL on Thursday with both teams in great form.
The Lightning are the favorites for the contest and their goals total is set at 3.5 with bookmaker Bovada offering odds at +115 for the over. The line for Colorado stands at 2.5 goals and the odds for the over are at -165.
※ Current Odds Date & Time: February 9th, 7:30 A.M. (EST)
The Avalanche have gone through a slight Cup hangover this season and the team has had awful luck with injuries, but they have started to pick up momentum lately and head to Tampa with a 7-2-1 run. Colorado won two of its three visits to Amalie Arena in last year’s Finals.
Captain Gabriel Landeskog remains unavailable with a knee injury, but the Avalanche are still a very dangerous team offensively with Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen leading the way. MacKinnon (1.40) is averaging the fourth-most points per game in the league and Rantanen (1.24) is sitting just outside the top 10.
Defensively, the Avalanche have taken a step back this season, but a 2.71 goals-against average still keeps the team in the top tier of the league, and their No. 1 between the pipes, Alexandar Georgiev, has just broken out of a slump with a 5-1-0 run.
Tampa also has a lot of offensive talent available and it’s pushed the team to a superb 20-4-2 home record. Jon Cooper’s men had won 12 straight in front of their fans before San Jose shocked them with a 4-3 overtime victory on Tuesday.
Nikita Kucherov has enjoyed the home outings the most and has a chance to make history on Thursday. He was able to match his own franchise record against San Jose with a 16-game home point streak and the former MVP now has the opportunity to set a new mark. He’s been averaging nearly two points per game at home this season and only Edmonton’s Connor McDavid (48) has managed more home points than Kucherov (47).
The Avalanche had a lot of success in Tampa last season and are now 4-1 overall in their last five trips there. Overall, the defending champions have beaten the Lightning six times out of the last eight meetings. However, Tampa’s superb home form is set to make winning very difficult for Colorado this time.
