by Chuck Sommers
Saturday, Jan 21, 2023
Time: 3 p.m. ET
Venue: Scotiabank Saddledome, Calgary, AB
Where to watch: CBC, TVAS, SN, BSSUN
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Flames -115, Lightning -105
FanDuel: Flames -115, Lightning -105
BetMGM: Flames -115, Lightning -105
Caesars: Flames -115, Lightning -105
Season record
Lightning: 29-14-1
Flames: 21-16-9
We’ve hit the halfway mark in the NHL season. Yes, you read that right. We’re really hit that halfway mark that quickly. If you blinked, you probably missed a lot of good things happen in the hockey world. And with football about to be out of the way, look for our champion handicappers to get back on the rink. Oskeim Sports is on a 13-5-0 run in the NHL over the last 30 days, as is Will Rogers. Sean Murphy has also cashed in with a 16-10-0 run in the last month. Make sure you’re following our champion handicappers at bigal.com to get on this winning action!
Lightning - Flames preview, prediction and analysis
The Tampa Bay Lightning will try to rebound after a tough loss in Edmonton the other night as they now take on the Calgary Flames in Alberta on Saturday.
Tampa Bay had its five game-winning streak snapped on Thursday and 85-3 loss to the Edmonton Oilers as Tampa Bay continues this Pacific Northwest and Canadian road trip. Steven Stamkos continued his ridiculous run after scoring his 500th NHL goal with another goal, and Brayden Point also added a goal in the second as Tampa Bay took a 2-0 deficit into a 3-3 tie going into the third. Unfortunately, Connor McDavid put away any and all comeback hopes for Tampa Bay.
"Obviously, we didn't come out ready to go and they did," Toffoli said. "They were faster in all areas of the ice -- skating, passing, and everything. We were trying to find our way back into the game, but they're the defending [Stanley Cup] champions for a reason."
We know by now that the Atlantic division is run by three teams in Tampa Bay of course being one of them. Tampa is 4 points behind the Toronto Maple Leafs for second place in the division and has played two fewer games. The Boston Bruins are far and away the best team in that division and in the league and there's no point in any team trying to catch them at this point. Right now, Tampa Bay is so far ahead of the game that there's no point in thinking that they are going to be losing a playoff spot anytime soon.
Calgary is coming into this matchup losers of two straight after winning two straight, that completely halted any momentum that the flames were putting together. Calgary is coming off a 4-1 loss to the Colorado Avalanche in which Calgary was favored for the 10th straight game.
Tyler Toffoli scored for Calgary, and Jacob Markstrom made just 27 saves and what was just another bad outing for Calgary altogether.
"We've played 46 games now and we're still looking for a really good game," Calgary center Elias Lindholm said. "It's concerning."
Calgary is currently tied with the Colorado Avalanche for the second wild card spot but Colorado has found itself with two games in hand despite being tied with Calgary in points. If anybody had any inkling of how the wild card race is going to turn out from spots two through 5, then we're likely in for a treat.
The experiment right now with Calgary trying to implement 2 new players of superstar caliber into this lineup has been a real struggle. Nazem Kadri and Jonathan Huberdeau have not been able to provide who streak of consistency that has been desperately needed from that group in order to consider themselves legit contenders for the Stanley Cup.
"Obviously, we didn't come out ready to go and they did," Toffoli said. "They were faster in all areas of the ice -- skating, passing, and everything. We were trying to find our way back into the game, but they're the defending [Stanley Cup] champions for a reason."
Prediction
If it weren't for the fact that Calgary has struggled to score as of late I might give them the chance in this game. But I don't necessarily believe that Calgary has enough firepower right now to hold on to what's happening to their spot in the standings. This is the perfect opportunity for Tampa to get back on track. Lightning 4, Flames 2
Betting trends
Lightning are 14-3 in their last 17 Saturday games.
Lightning are 43-12 in their last 55 against teams with a winning record.
Flames are 4-1 in their last five following a home loss of 3 goals or more.
Projected lines
Lightning:
Steven Stamkos -- Brayden Point -- Nikita Kucherov
Brandon Hagel -- Anthony Cirelli -- Alex Killorn
Ross Colton -- Nicholas Paul -- Pat Maroon
Vladislav Namestnikov -- Pierre-Edouard Bellemare -- Corey Perry
Victor Hedman -- Zach Bogosian
Ian Cole -- Erik Cernak
Mikhail Sergachev -- Cal Foote
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Flames:
Dillon Dube -- Elias Lindholm -- Tyler Toffoli
Milan Lucic -- Nazem Kadri -- Jonathan Huberdeau
Andrew Mangiapane -- Mikael Backlund -- Blake Coleman
Jakob Pelletier -- Trevor Lewis -- Walker Duehr
Noah Hanifin -- Rasmus Andersson
MacKenzie Weegar -- Chris Tanev
Nikita Zadorov -- Michael Stone
Jacob Markstrom
Don't miss our champion handicappers' free picks and expert hockey picks today. And if you enjoyed this Tampa Bay Lightning - Calgary Flames prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our daily NHL projections and previews.
Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
