Week 22 of the 2022 NHL season is here and NHL Trade Deadline is behind us, which means the hunt for the 2022 NHL Playoffs and the Stanley Cup has begun in earnest. With that, we look at three of the most important games on the NHL’s schedule for today, Thursday, March 24, 2022.
Before we look at all of the games on today’s NHL schedule, check out the odds for the 2022 NHL Playoffs and the latest odds on Stanley Cup Futures.
Tampa Bay vs. Boston
Date & Location: Thursday, March 24 at TD Garden in Boston, MA
Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
How to Watch: Sportsnet NOW, NHL Live
The Tampa Bay Lightning and Boston Bruins are both in the mix for the 2022 NHL Playoffs, but the teams could improve their standing ahead of the postseason. Tampa Bay is fifth in the Eastern Conference with 84 points — the Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes are at the top with 90 points each — and the Bruins are the No. 7 team with 83 points.
The Lightning are struggling as of late with a 4-6 record over their past 10 games. The Bruins are 7-2-1 in their 10 most recent outings. Tampa Bay enters this contest on a two-game losing skid, while Boston has won its past two games. The teams are 1-1 against each other this year with Tampa Bay winning 3-2 in OT in Boston in December and Boston winning 5-2 in Tampa in January.
Victor Hedman has been a point-per-game player for the Lightning in its last five outings with three goals and two assists. Meanwhile, Charlie Coyle has seven points over Boston’s past five outings (1 goal and 6 assists) while Brad Marchand has four goals in the team’s past five games.
Tampa has the goaltending advantage with Andrei Vasilevskiy, but Tampa has to score more goals if it wants to help its goalkeeper. The team has had three goals in its past two games and has been struggling to put the puck in the net since March 10. Tampa has 11 goals in its past six games. Four of those came in one game.
Pick: Boston to beat Tampa Bay.
Dallas vs. Carolina
Date & Location: Thursday, March 24 at PNC Arena in Raleigh, NC
Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
How to Watch: Sportsnet NOW, NHL Live
The Carolina Hurricanes are near the top of the Eastern Conference with 90 points and look like a lock for the 2022 NHL Playoffs. Meanwhile, the Dallas Stars are in the No. 8 spot in the Western Conference with 73 points and have the Vegas Golden Knights and Winnipeg Jets breathing down their necks.
This is the second meeting of the year between the Stars and the Hurricanes. The clubs first met in November and Dallas won that game 4-1 at home. This game is in Carolina where the Hurricanes are 24-5-3 Two of the team’s home losses have come in its past three games with setbacks to Washington (4-3 SO) and the New York Rangers (2-0). Dallas is 4-3 on the road since the start of March.
Jake Oettinger was not the starting goaltender for the Stars at the beginning of the year, but he has the job now and has played well in the net. Oettinger has a 2.49 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage on the year. Carolina has the top goalie in the league in Frederik Andersen. Andersen leads the NHL in GAA (2.06), he is second in SV PCT (.928) and third in wins (31).
Carolina is 5-4-1 in its last 10 games. The team ended a four-game losing skid, its longest stretch of consecutive losses all season, with a 3-2 win over Tampa Bay on Tuesday. Dallas is 6-4-0 over that same span. The team has two consecutive victories ahead of tonight’s game.
Pick: Carolina to beat Dallas.
Ottawa vs. Winnipeg
Date & Location: Thursday, March 24 at Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg
Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
How to Watch: TSN
The Ottawa Senators are out of the playoff hunt in 2022, but that doesn’t mean the team can’t play spoiler for teams that are on the playoff bubble. Ottawa faces one of those clubs tonight when it travels to Manitoba to play the Winnipeg Jets. The Jets are the No. 10 team in the Western Conference, but the club is within striking distance of a spot in the 2022 NHL postseason.
The Jets are on a 6-3-1 run ahead of tonight’s matchup and coming off back-to-back wins over Chicago and Vegas. Winnipeg needs every point it can get if it hopes to earn a playoff spot. The No. 8 position in the West is held down by the Dallas Stars who have 73 points. The Jets have 70 points but have played two fewer games than Dallas.
Kyle Connor has been on fire for the Jets. Connor has scored 13 points for Winnipeg (3 G, 10 A) in the team’s past five games. Connor is the No. 6 player in the NHL scoring race on the season with 79 points (39 G, 40 A). Ottawa’s best scorer is Brady Tkachuk, who has 44 points this season. That total puts Tkachuk at No. 93 in NHL scoring on the season.
Pick: Winnipeg to beat Ottawa.
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