Colorado Avalanche Vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (6/20/22) Betting Odds, Prediction, Line Combination, Starting Goalies
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On Saturday night, at a raucous Ball Arena the Colorado Avalanche rolled over the Tampa Bay Lightning, 7-0 to take a 2-0 lead in the Stanley Cup Final with the series shifting to Amalie Arena for Game 3. Valeri Nichuskin scored two goals, while Andre Burakovsky scored his second goal of the Stanley Cup Final and defenseman Josh Manson scored his first goal of the series in the blowout victory. Colorado goalie, Darcy Kuemper made 16 saves earning his second NHL playoff shutout.
The Avalanche had the best record in the Western Conference this season at 56-19-7 with 119 points. Colorado is the favorite to win the 2021-22 Stanley Cup at -600; the Avalanche have won two titles since moving from Quebec as the Nordiques to Colorado in 1995; their last one being in 2001 when they beat the New Jersey Devils.
Tampa Bay has captured the last two Stanley Cups and currently listed at +450 while being down 2-0 in the 2022 Stanley Cup Final, to win their third consecutive championship; the last team to do so was the New York Islanders who won four straight Stanley Cups; 1979-80 through 1982-83; winning an unbelievable 19 consecutive playoff series, the Lightning have won 11 straight series.
Colorado Avalanche Vs. Tampa Bay Lightning Betting Odds
The Avalanche are 23-9 in their last 32 road games. Under is 4-1-2 in Colorado’s last seven Stanley Cup Final games. The Avalanche are 41-18 in their last 59 games playing on one days’ rest. Over is 5-2 in Colorado’s last seven road games. Over is 5-1 in the last six meetings between the Avalanche and Lightning. Tampa Bay is 8-3 in their last 11 Stanley Cup Final games. Over is 4-0 in the Lightning’s last four contests vs. Western Conference opponents. Tampa Bay is 102-47 in their last 149 games playing on one days’ rest. Under is 5-0 in the Lightning’s last five home games.
Colorado Avalanche Analysis
Darcy Kuemper who’s battled through injuries during the playoffs in 2022 has played well in the first two games of the Stanley Cup Final: making 36 saves on 39 shot attempts. In 12 postseason games, Kuemper has a save percentage of .901 with a 2.44 GAA. Kumper is +4500 to win the 2022 Conn Smythe Trophy.
Cale Makar is tied for third overall in the NHL in postseason with 24 points; in Game 2 of the Stanley Final, he scored two goals (one shorthanded and another on the power play. Additionally, he’s a +13 while averaging 26:52 of ice time per contest in the playoffs. At -180 he’s the favorite to win the 2021-22 Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. Devon Toews is a +9 while averaging 25:31 of ice time per game in the postseason. Toews has 14 points (five goals and nine assists) during Colorado’s postseason run this year.
Mikko Rantanen led Colorado in scoring this season with 92 points (36 goals and 56 assists) while being an impressive +35. Through 16 playoff games in 2021-22, he has 22 points (five goals and 17 assists); second on the Avalanche in postseason scoring. Rantanen is +650 to win the Conn Smythe Award. Nathan MacKinnon is the second favorite to win the Conn Smythe Trophy at +350 this season. MacKinnon leads Colorado in goals (11) and ranks third on the team with 20 points this postseason. In the first two games of the 2022 Stanley Cup Final, he has two assists. Gabriel Landeskog has tallied 19 points (nine goals and 10 assists) in 16 postseason games in 2022; ranked fourth in playoff scoring for the Avalanche. The Colorado captain is currently +3000 to win the Conn Smythe Trophy. Valeri Nichushkin has four points (three goals and one assist) in the Stanley Cup Final against the Lightning. He has 13 points (eight goals and five assists) in 16 games in the postseason. Colorado’s number 13 is +200 to win the Conn Smythe Trophy this season.
Tampa Bay Lightning Analysis
Nikita Kucherov was the Lightning third leading scorer with 69 points (25 goals and 44 assists) despite playing in only 47 regular season games in 2022. The 2018-19 Hart Trophy winner is Tampa Bay’s leading scorer in the playoffs with 24 points (seven goals and 17 assists). Kucherov is +1100 to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP this season.
Ondrej Palat has 17 points (nine goals and eight assists) during the postseason this campaign; second on Tampa Bay in postseason scoring. Per NHL.com, he’s the first player in NHL history to score multiple game-winning goals during the final two minutes of regulation in a single postseason. He’s also scored 11 game-winning goals in 134 postseason games. Steven Stamkos led the team in goals with 42 and points with 106 points during the regular season. The two-time Stanley Cup champion has 15 points (nine goals and six assists) in 19 playoff contests this year; tied for third on the team in postseason scoring.
Victor Hedman was the second leading scorer for Tampa Bay in 2021-22 with 85 points (20 goals and 65 assists). The 2017-18 Norris Trophy winner is tied for third on the Lightning in postseason with 15 points (two goals and 13 assists). Additionally, Hedman is averaging 24:24 of ice time per playoff contest in 2022.
Andrei Vasilevskiy, the 2018-19 Vezina Trophy winner was 39-18-5 with a 2.49 GAA in 63 games this season. In the Game 2 loss on Saturday, the Lightning’s number 88 was lit up for seven goals on 31 shots. Through 19 playoff games this year the 2021 Conn Smythe Trophy winner, is 12-7, he has a .918 save percentage and a 2.60 GAA.
Colorado Avalanche Vs. Tampa Bay Lightning Picks & Prediction
Tampa Bay has scored 55 goals this postseason: averaging 2.9 goals per game, but only three goals through the first two games of the Stanley Cup Final. Over is 4-0 in the last four meetings in Tampa Bay between the Lightning and Avalanche. Tampa Bay is 36-16 in their last 52 Monday games; hopefully that’s a good omen for the champions. In the first two games of the 2022 Stanley Cup Final, the Avalanche have scored 11 goals (including overtime); averaging 5.5 goals per contest; the same amount they averaged in the Western Conference Finals against the Edmonton Oilers. The road team is 9-4 in the last 13 meetings between Colorado and Tampa Bay.
The Avalanche are the best skating team since the Chicago Blackhawk championship teams of the mid-2010’s, they move the puck extremely well on breakouts from their zone and enter their opponents zone using their speed and skill. I like Colorado to go into Tampa Bay and put the defending back-to-back champions in a 3-0 hole; the Avalanche look like their scoring depth is just too much for the Lightning. Colorado wins this game as the “underdog” 5-2; as the clubs go over six combined goals.
Away Team Vs. Home Starting Goalies & Line Combination
