Carolina at Tampa Bay

Carolina is on an 8-4 run playing strong defense, killing 17-of-18 power plays by opponents. They won at Pittsburgh as a dog, 4-0, at Nashville, a 4-1 victory as a +150 dog, and at Vegas (3-2) as a +155 dog. Carolina is on a 7-3 run against the Eastern Conference and is a big dog to a Tampa Bay team off a grueling stretch. The Lightning just ended a taxing five-game road trip and are 3-3 the last six games, losing all three as favorites of -250, -180 and -200. The Lightning suffered their second straight defeat 6-3 in Ottawa on Saturday, but rebounded 24 hours later to win 5-2 at Detroit in a physical affair. The road trip is over but they are working on one day of rest while Carolina has had two days of rest, making this an excellent spot for the big dog that is playing well. Take Carolina.