Tampa Bay Lightning vs. New York Rangers Picks, Predictions, Odds

Daniel Dobish Sports Betting Expert

14 minute read

The Tampa Bay Lightning and the New York Rangers meet at Madison Square Garden Friday night for Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals, a best-of-seven series. Puck drop is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET, and the game can be viewed on ESPN/ESPN+.

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Score Prediction

Lightning 4, Rangers 2

Best Bet

Lightning -120
Over 5.5 (-105)

TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING vs. NEW YORK RANGERS PREDICTIONS

The Rangers carried over their momentum from the second-round series victory against the Carolina Hurricanes into Game 1. For those who were wondering if the Tampa Bay Lightning would be rusty after a long layoff following their sweep of the Florida Panthers, it was confirmed - yes. Yes, the Lightning came out rusty and never recovered.

New York fired out of the chute with a goal from Chris Kreider just 71 seconds into the game, helped out by Mika Zibanejad and Frank Vatrano. Steven Stamkos answered six minutes later, and that's how the first period came to a close.

Vatrano notched his fourth of the postseason to give New York a 2-1 lead, but Ondrej Palat leveled the game 2-2 just 42 seconds later. After that, the Lightning had no further answers. Filip Chytil had two goals to close out the second period, making it 4-2. If that seems odd, it was, as the NHL's leading scoring team in the regular season, the Panthers, managed just three goals in four games in the second round. Ut-oh.

Artemi Panarin helped the Rangers keep their foot on the gas, scoring 30 seconds into the third, and Zibanejad put a bow on the scoring with a power-play marker at 6:06 of the third, as New York won it 6-2 for the OVER result.

We haven't re-visited this stat in a while, as Tampa Bay had won the previous six games. However, Vasilevskiy is a perfect 17-0 with a 1.47 GAA and .942 SV% with five shutouts following a playoff loss dating back to 2020.

Updated on 04/18/2024

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TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING vs. NEW YORK RANGERS BETTING ODDS

Lightning -120
Rangers +100
Lightning -1.5 (+200)
Rangers +1.5 (-250)
Over 5.5 (-105)
Under 5.5 (-115)

More Odds | Futures Odds

TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING vs. NEW YORK RANGERS BETTING RESOURCES

• Date: Friday, June 1, 2022
• Matchup: Atlantic vs. Metropolitan
• Venue: Madison Square Garden
• Location: New York, N.Y.
• TV-Time: ESPN/ESPN+, 8 p.m. ET

TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING BETTING ANALYSIS

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

• SU: 59-27-8
• ATS: 46-48
• O/U: 50-42-2

The last time the Lightning suffered a loss, falling 4-3 in Game 5 in Toronto in the first round, the team rebounded with a 4-3 win in overtime in Game 6 of that series. That was an elimination game, so it will be interesting to see how the Lightning respond in Game 2.

Prior to its loss in New York in the series opener, Tampa Bay had won the past five games by a combined score of 15-4. The last time the Lightning allowed six or more goals was April 4 at home against Toronto at home. The difference here might be that the Rangers won all three regular-season meetings, too, so perhaps New York has Tampa Bay's number.

There is plenty of hockey left in this series, though, and previous games against each other do not mean much. The Lightning are 6-1 in the past seven games overall, while going 22-9 in the past 31 playoff games as a favorite.

For totals, the UNDER is 6-3-3 in the past 12 games in the Conference Finals Round, while going 13-7 in the past 20 games on the road. Of course, none of that mattered in Round 1, as the Rangers took care of the OVER on their own.

NEW YORK RANGERS BETTING ANALYSIS

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

• SU: 61-28-8
• ATS: 51-46
• O/U: 42-52-3

The Rangers had scored a total of nine goals in the first five games of the Carolina series. New York appears to have righted the ship in a big way, going for five or more goals in the past three outings, averaging 5.7 GPG. That's three straight OVER results after a 5-0 UNDER run.

New York has now won five of the past six games overall, and it is 43-20 in the past 63 games at MSG. It is also 7-2 in the past nine games as a home underdog, although it is still just 2-6 in the past eight overall as a 'dog.

For totals, the OVER has cashed in six of the past eight games at home for the Rangers, while hitting in five in a row as a home 'dog.

TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING vs. NEW YORK RANGERS CONCLUSION

The Lightning have rebounded from a playoff loss time and time again. Can Vasilevskiy do it again? Yes, again, he is 17-0 in the past 17 playoff losses since 2020, but eventually, good things come to an end. New York is red-hot, so this is the biggest threat yet to Vasilevskiy's impressive streak, as well as the Lightning resilient run following a playoff setback.

I still believe in the two-time defending champs. The Rangers are playing amazing hockey over the past week or so, but I think we're going to get a much different result in Game 2. Not only do I trust the Lightning to continue their amazing trend of bouncing back, but I think Vasilevskiy and Igor Shesterkin do what we expected from the jump, and that's stop plenty of shots, and produce frequent UNDER results.

TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING vs. NEW YORK RANGERS BETTING TRENDS

• Lightning are 6-1 in the past seven games overall.
• Lightning are 49-22 in the past 71 as a favorite.
• Lightning are 22-9 in the past 31 playoff games as a fave.
• Rangers are 5-1 in the past six games overall.
• Rangers are 43-20 in the past 63 home games.
• Rangers are 2-6 in the past eight as an underdog.
• Rangers are 7-2 in the past nine as a home 'dog.
• UNDER is 5-1 in the past six for the Lightning.
• UNDER is 13-7 in the past 20 road games for the Lightning.
• UNDER is 6-3-3 in the past 12 Conference Finals games for the Lightning.
• OVER is 6-2 in the past eight home games for the Rangers.
• UNDER is 7-3-1 in the past 11 playoff games as a 'dog for the Rangers.
• OVER is 5-0 in the past five as a home 'dog for the Rangers.
• Lightning are 1-5 in the past six meetings.
• Underdog is 5-1 in the past six meetings.

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Daniel Dobish

Dan is a handicapper and sports betting expert for VegasInsider with years of experience writing for a number of top publications in the industry. More from Daniel Dobish