Lightning vs. Capitals Odds
(TheSpread) – The Washington Capitals look to continue their run to the Stanley Cup when they begin their second round playoff series with the Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday.
The Capitals are the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference and they defeated the New York Rangers in five games in the first round. Tampa Bay is the fifth seed in the East and they reached the second round by beating Pittsburgh in seven games.
According to oddsmakers from online sports book Bodog.com Washington is the favorite to win the series with odds of -220 while the Lightning come in with series odds of +170.
The Capitals didn’t have too much trouble in the opening round as they jumped out to a 2-0 lead on New York and then overcame a 3-0 deficit in Game 4 to win 4-3 in double overtime to pretty much wrap things up. The Capitals scored 13 goals in the five games while allowing just 8 goals.
The Lightning actually fell behind 3-1 in their series with the Penguins, but rallied to win the final three games, including two at Pittsburgh. In fact, three of the four wins for Tampa Bay came on the road. The Lightning scored 22 goals in the series and gave up 14.
These two teams faced off six times during the season with Washington winning four times and Tampa winning twice. The Capitals scored 19 goals in the six contests while Tampa Bay posted 10 goals.
Trends show that the Lightning are 2-9 in their last 11 games at Washington and 6-20 in their last 26 overall games with the Capitals.
In terms of injuries, Tampa Bay defenseman Matt Smaby is questionable for the series opener with a lower body injury while Washington winger Mike Knuble is doubtful with a hand injury.
2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs Second Round Odds – Lightning vs. Capitals
Tampa Bay Lightning +170
Washington Capitals -220
Lightning vs. Capitals Series Schedule
Friday, April 29 at Washington, 7:00 p.m. VERSUS, TSN
Sunday, May 1 at Washington, 7:00 p.m. VERSUS, CBC
Tuesday, May 3 at Tampa Bay, 6:30 p.m. VERSUS, TSN
Wednesday, May 4 at Tampa Bay, 7:00 p.m. TSN
*Saturday, May 7 at Washington, 12:30 p.m. NBC, TSN
*Monday, May 9 at Tampa Bay, TBD VERSUS, TSN
*Wednesday, May 11 at Washington, TBD VERSUS, TSN
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