Detroit Red Wings vs Tampa Bay Lightning Betting Pick & Prediction 1/18/25

Planning on watching today’s Red Wings and Lightning game? Catch the action at Amalie Arena in Tampa, FL, as the Lightning hosts this showdown at 7:00 ET on ESPN+. This Atlantic division matchup has an over/under of 6 goals, and the Lightning are favored by -1.5 at home vs. the Red Wings.

DETROIT RED WINGS VS TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING BETTING PICK

The Pick: Tampa Bay Lightning -1.5

This game will be played at Amalie Arena at 7:00 ET on Saturday, January 18th.

WHY BET THE TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING:

• Even though they are considered 1.5-goal underdogs, our projection points to a 4-3 win for the Red Wings.
• We like the Red Wings on the moneyline (+170)
• The Red Wings are also our pick on the spread at +1.5

Are Detroit Ready for a Road Win?

With a 2-1 win over the Sabres, the Red Wings improved to 21-19-4. Detroit, favored by -1.5 goals, didn’t cover the puck line, and the total of 3 goals fell short of the 6.5 set before the game.

After trailing in the first period, the Red Wings responded with two goals from Dylan Larkin in the second. Both of Larkin’s goals came on the power play.

In their 2-1 win over the Sabres, the Red Wings’ offense was held scoreless in the first period before Dylan Larkin found the net twice in the second, bringing his season goal total to 6 and 7. Both of Larkin’s goals came on power plays, with the first at 12:11 in the second period and the second at 5:22.

Detroit took 23 shots on goal but struggled with giveaways, tallying 15 in the game. Patrick Kane picked up his 6th assist on Larkin’s first goal, while Alex DeBrincat added his 4th assist and Lucas Raymond notched his 10th on the second goal.

Detroit’s defense gave up the first goal 11:39 into the first period, but they locked things down after that, not allowing another goal. Cam Talbot made 31 saves with a 96.9% save percentage, and the defense added 4 takeaways and 11 hits.

Can the Lightning Pull Off a Home Win?

The Lightning fell to 24-16-3 after a 7-4 loss to the Jets. Tampa Bay held a 2-0 lead early, but Winnipeg scored seven of the next nine goals. The total was set at 6.5 goals, and the combined 11 goals easily went over. Tampa Bay, as underdogs on the puck line, failed to cover.

Four different Lightning players scored in the game. They were ahead 2-0 and 3-2 at different points, but the Jets pulled away with three unanswered goals to end the game.

Tampa Bay’s offense managed 4 goals on 30 shots in their 7-4 loss to Winnipeg. Brandon Hagel opened the scoring with his 7th goal of the season, while Brayden Point followed with his 8th on a power play. Mitchell Chaffee added his 4th goal, and Nikita Kucherov netted his 10th.

Kucherov’s goal was unassisted, as was Hagel’s. Chaffee’s goal was assisted by Jake Guentzel, his 8th assist of the season, and Nick Paul, who picked up his 7th assist.

Defensively, the Lightning will look to improve after allowing the final three goals in their 7-4 loss to the Jets. They had tied the game at 4-4 in the 3rd period, but gave up the go-ahead goal, followed by two empty-netters. Goalie Jonas Johansson recorded 27 saves with a save percentage of 84.4%.