No nights off: Lightning at Vancouver preview

Game Sixty-Seven: Tampa Bay Lightning (41-21-4) at Vancouver (21-38-4)

Time: 10:00 PM EST

Location: Rogers Arena, Vancouver

TV/Stream/Radio: The Spot, SNP, ESPN+, 102.5 FM, Lightning App

Odds: Lightning -290

Know the Opponents: Canucks Army

As one might expect, the Tampa Bay Lightning, despite their recent struggles are heavy favorites heading into tonight’s game against Vancouver. So, they can just chalk up the two points and move on with their life, right? Wrong. If the Seattle game was an important win because the Lightning got back to their style of hockey, tonight’s game is equally important to show that they can replicate the effort.

Yes Vancouver might be 31st in goals scored. They might also be 32nd in goals allowed. Special teams is another area of woe for them with a 22nd ranked power play and a penalty kill residing at the bottom of the statsheet. Still, this is the NHL, where the margin between very good and very bad is wafer-thin. The Canucks are rebuilding for the future, but they still have some productive players on the team.

Since the trade deadline, they’ve gone 2-2-1 with wins against Nashville and Florida. It’s not enough to lift them out of the hole they’ve dug, but it shows that they’re not going to back down from any challenge. There are also a lot of younger players like Marco Rossi and Zeev Buium playing for bigger roles on next year’s team.

It wouldn’t be surprising to see Coach Jon Cooper rely on the Yanni Gourde line a lot tonight. The Lightning do have the advantage of depth in the match-up, and if Vancouver uses their best on the Lightning’s best, Gourde and his linemates could prove to be the difference.

With a relatively inexperienced defense (four of their projected defensive starters are 23 or younger) the Lightning’s forecheck should be a big factor tonight as well. They were able to disrupt Seattle’s breakouts for most of the game on Tuesday, forcing the Kraken to turn the puck over on several goals. If Tampa Bay can put that kind of pressure on in Vancouver’s end, it should be a good night for Lightning fans.

As for a little scoreboard watching, the Canadiens and Red Wings face off in a “please just have one team win in regulation” game while the Sabres are on the road against the extremely frisky San Jose Sharks. Finally, the Bruins are hosting the Winnipeg Jets tonight. Should be an entertaining night all across the Atlantic Division.

Potential Lines

Tampa Bay Lightning

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Vancouver Canucks

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