NHL.com identifies key gameday matchups and players to watch throughout the 2023-24 season.
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Note: Betting lines provided by Betway (U.S., Ontario)
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1. Tampa Bay Lightning at Vegas Golden Knights (10 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, BSSUN, SNO, SNE, SN1)
3-way moneyline:
TBL regulation win: +180
Draw at end of regulation: +320
VGK regulation win: +115
The Lightning are on a three-game winning streak, with each of the victories coming in regulation and a combined 18 goals scored in the span, and had a 5-4 home win against the Golden Knights on Dec. 21. Vegas is 5-9-1 in its past 15 games with only two games going past regulation in that span. Tampa Bay ranks tied for 11th in regulation wins (29) this season, and Vegas is right behind them in 13th (28).
Four Lightning players had three-point games against the Golden Knights in the earlier matchup: forwards Brayden Point (two goals, one assist), Nikita Kucherov, Nick Paul (each had one goal, two assists) and defenseman Victor Hedman (three assists). Point has nine points (five goals, four assists) in five games this month, including a six-point game against the New York Rangers on Thursday. Vegas forward Jonathan Marchessault has 13 points (seven goals, six assists) in 15 career games against Tampa Bay, his former team, including two goals on six shots on goal Dec. 21.
2. Buffalo Sabres at Vancouver Canucks (10 p.m. ET; SNP, MSG-B)
BUF moneyline: +175
VAN moneyline: -210
The Sabres have won four of their past five games after a 6-2 win at the Seattle Kraken on Monday but are 3-7-0 this season when playing on no days rest. Vancouver had a 1-0 road win against Buffalo on Jan. 13 with forward Sam Lafferty scoring the lone goal. Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko had a 26-save shutout in the victory but remains out week to week with a lower-body injury. Vancouver ranks fifth in goals per game (3.50), while Buffalo is 21st (2.97).
The Sabres have recalled goalie Devon Levi from Rochester of the American Hockey League, and the rookie could play after Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (17-9-1, .930 save percentage, four shutouts in 27 games since Dec. 30) started and won at the Kraken. Buffalo forward Tage Thompson has six points (three goals, three assists) and 19 shots on goal over his past five games. Vancouver, which has seen 15 of its 21 home wins come by multiple goals, has three of the NHL’s top 20 goal scorers in forwards Brock Boeser (36; tied for ninth), J.T. Miller (33; tied for 15th) and Elias Pettersson (31; 19th).
3. Carolina Hurricanes at New York Islanders (7:30 p.m. ET; HULU, ESPN+)
Over 5.5 total goals: -140
Under 5.5 total goals: +110
The Islanders rank 11th in team save percentage (.902), while the Hurricanes are tied for 17th (.897). Carolina goalie Frederik Andersen is 4-0-0 with a .949 save percentage and one shutout since returning from a blood clotting issue; per NHL EDGE stats, New York goalie Ilya Sorokin has the seventh-best high-danger save percentage (.833) this season. But it’s been a high-scoring season series (total of 25 goals in three games), with the Islanders going 2-0-1 against the Hurricanes.
Carolina forwards Jake Guentzel (five points, 11 shots on goal in four games) and Evgeny Kuznetsov (four points, 16 SOG in six games) have been productive since being acquired prior to the NHL Trade Deadline. New York forward Mathew Barzal leads the season series with eight points (two goals, six assists) in three games.
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