The defense is where I begin to have a bit of an issue because come playoffs, goals become more challenging to come by, and defense will play an important role. They are 22nd in giving up goals at 3.29 per game.
Goaltender Darcy Kuemper has been playing decently well but could step up a bit more as he is 16-5-1 and allowing 2.86 goals per game with a save percentage of .905. If he can get that up a bit, they will be able to be leading the division and dominate the rest of the league in the playoffs.
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Tampa Bay Lightning (+750)
It’s difficult to understand how the franchise who won back-to-back Stanley Cup Championships could be the second-highest odds, but they have a lot of talent and are still flexing their muscles. They are seventh in scoring goals at 3.33 per game and are average on the power play, being 14th at 19.8 percent.
However, they keep winning as they are currently second in the Atlantic Division with a 25-9-5 record and are two points behind the Florida Panthers for the lead. They are getting healthy as the season progresses and have critical playoff experience on their roster.
