Lightning vs. Canadiens Game 3 Prediction
Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals will take place from Montreal on Friday night where the Canadiens will host the Lightning at 8:00 p.m. ET. Down 2-0 in the series, will the Habs pull off the upset now that they’re at home or is there a better play on the board?
Game Snapshot
011 Tampa Bay Lightning (-129) at 012 Montreal Canadiens (+117); o/u 5
8:00 p.m. ET, Friday, July 2, 2021
Bell Centre, Montreal, QC
TV: NBC
Tampa Bay Lightning DFS Spin
Andrei Vasilevskiy turned aside 42 shots in a 3-1 win over Montreal on Wednesday in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final. Vasilevskiy was outstanding in the contest, while stopping 28 of 29 shots through two periods of play. He kept the game close despite Montreal’s superb second period and then Blake Coleman rewarded him for his efforts with a buzzer beater with 1.1 seconds remaining. Tampa Bay was stronger in the third period and Vasilevskiy closed the door completely to give the Lightning a 2-0 series lead. He certainly played like someone who might have felt snubbed about not winning the Vezina Trophy on Tuesday. Vasilevsky has won his last three starts, while giving up just two goals on 80 shots.
Montreal Canadiens DFS Spin
Carey Price surrendered three goals on 23 shots in Wednesday’s 3-1 loss to Tampa Bay in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final. Price only had to make six saves in the first period, but allowed the first goal of the match when he was unable to pick up a shot by Anthony Cirelli through traffic. Blake Coleman gave the Lightning a 2-1 lead with only 1.1 seconds left in the second period and that held up as the game winner. Ondrej Palat gave Tampa Bay some breathing room in the third period after a turnover was committed by Canadiens defenseman Joel Edmundson. This is the first time that Price and Montreal have lost two games in a row this postseason since the first round when Toronto won three straight times after the Canadiens were victorious in the series opener. They will look to bounce back in Game 3 back on home ice on Friday.
Stanley Cup Final Prediction
The Lightning are 4-1 in their last five trips to Montreal and have won 14 of the last 17 meetings between these two teams overall. The favorite is also 19-7 in the last 26 meetings, while the Lightning are 86-39 in their last 125 games as a favorite and are 5-2 in their last seven games as a road favorite. Finally, the Lightning have won 94 of their last 137 games overall and are 69-32 in their last 101 games after allowing two goals or less in their previous contest.
NHL STANLEY CUP FINAL GAME 3 PREDICTION: TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING -129