Red Wings visit Lightning for Game 7

The NHL playoffs continue on Wednesday with Game 7 of an Eastern Conference quarterfinal series between the Detroit Red Wings and the host Tampa Bay Lightning. This series will end tonight with the winner moving on to the conference semifinals and the loser going home for the summer.

The current line has Tampa Bay favored at -185. The over/under goal total for the game is now at 5.

Tampa Bay owned the best record at home in the NHL this past regular season and looks to exploit that advantage tonight in the final game of the series.

However, in this series an advantage on home ice has not been a factor. The visiting team has won the past three games, including a 5-2 victory by Tampa Bay on Monday that evened the series at 3-3.

Tyler Johnson scored twice for Tampa Bay in the elimination game on Monday. Detroit now much play on the road in a Game 7 without Niklas Kronwall their star defenseman, who was given a suspension of one game on Tuesday by the NHL for charging Nikita Kucherov from Tampa Bay. Neither team has won two consecutive games during the season.

Tomas Tatar scored the two goals for Detroit in Game 6. However, Henrik Zetterberg’s swoon during the second half of this season continues. The captain has not scored a goal or assist in the series and has only three goals in his past 30 games.

Detroit was the second highest ranked team in the power play this season and has scored 5 power play goals thus far in the series, but only converted 1 of 7 opportunities in their Game 6 loss.

Johnson has three games with two goals during the series. He is tied for the league in playoff scoring. Johnson’s play has helped offset the poor play of Steven Stamkos the team captain who does not have a goal in the series, after scoring 43 during the regular season to finish second to just Alex Ovechkin.

While Detroit fans will remember Kucherov for being charged by Kronwall, he also recorded three assists in Monday’s win, after scoring just one point in Games 1 through 5.

Only once the entire regular season has Tampa Bay lost consecutive games at home and that was back in early December.

Detroit has killed fifteen straight Lightning power play changes.

Johnson is the only Tampa Bay player in the history of the franchise with three games with multi-goals in one playoff series.

Detroit is 1-5 over its past 7 games against the Lightning played at Tampa Bay. The UNDER has cashed in 5 of the past 8 games between the two teams.

Pick: Tampa Bay 4-2