NHL Odds: Lightning-Bruins on NBCSN

After rocketing to the top of the Stanley Cup futures market, the 16-5-2 Tampa Bay Lightning (+700) wrap up a four-game road trip this Wednesday against the 10-8-4 Boston Bruins (+3300). NBCSN has the coverage from the Garden beginning at 7:30 PM ET.

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The Lightning missed the playoffs last year, but having All-Star center Steven Stamkos (10 goals, 26 assists in 23 games) back in the lineup has made a world of difference. Tampa Bay has been blessed by good health thus far; the Bruins, on the other hand, have six players on the shelf at press time, including last year’s top scorer, LW Brad Marchand (eight goals, seven assists in 14 games). He’s iffy for Wednesday after missing over two weeks with an undisclosed upper-body injury.

Boston will have the advantage of rest in this matchup, as the Lightning also have to play Tuesday in Buffalo. Andrei Vasilevskiy (.930 save percentage) is projected to play both games for Tampa Bay, while veteran netminder Tuukka Rask (.899 SV%) is expected to suit up for the Bruins. Rask, a former Vezina winner, is having the worst season of his career, and could lose his job to Anton Khudobin (.932 SV%).

NHL Odds: Will Lightning Crash in Boston?

The 16-5-2 Tampa Bay Lightning might be the best team in the NHL right now. But they’ve lost the first two games of their current four-game road trip, which ends Wednesday night (7:30 PM ET, NBCSN) at the Garden against the 10-8-4 Boston Bruins.

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While the Lightning have enjoyed good health this year, the Bruins have six players who could miss Wednesday’s game, including LW Brad Marchand, their leading scorer in 2016-17. Marchand (eight goals, seven assists in 14 games) has missed the last two weeks with an upper-body injury; his status for Wednesday remains uncertain at press time.