Posted at 11:00 AM EST. Odds subject to change.

Pinnacle  -½ +141 BET365 -½ +145 Sportsinteraction -½ +130  888Sport +140

Pittsburgh -½ +145 over Tampa Bay

1:07 PM EST. The Lightning were idle last night, but they had reason to celebrate as they clinched a playoff spot for the seventh year in a row after a trio of results went their way. With Washington, Philadelphia, and Detroit all losing their respective games, the Bolts sit in the first Wild Card (WC1) position, 10 points up on Philly for Wild Card spot number two (WC2), and two points back of the Maple Leafs for third in the Atlantic. What is going to motivate Tampa to show up in full force for a sleepy afternoon start in the Steel City?

Whether Tampa finishes third in the Atlantic or as WC1, they are going to start the first round on the road at either Florida, Boston, New York, or Carolina, depending on how those teams finish the year. There are three points separating the Rangers from the Bruins, four points between Boston and Florida (who play today, by the way), and five points separating the Rangers and Hurricanes.

Meanwhile, the Penguins are surging on the back of a six-game point streak that includes three straight wins. In those wins, the Pens have potted 15 goals, posting five on the Rangers (5-2, W), six on the Devils (6-3, W), and four on the Capitals (4-1, W), one of the clubs the Penguins are chasing for the final Wild Card spot. Currently, the Flyers sit in WC2 with 83 points, with the Caps and Red Wings sitting one point back and the Pens two, but all three of those teams have a game in hand on the Flyers. With the Caps and Red Wings both losing games in bunches, the path to the playoffs for the Pens is wide open, and we expect all hands on deck today. Play the Penguins straight up if you choose, but we are not passing up the value in them on the half-puck or 3-way line.

Sherwood

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