Tampa Bay at Pittsburgh

Tampa Bay heads out on the road for Game 1 and is not at full strength. The Lightning’s top-pair of defensemen, Anton Stralman (broken fibula) and captain Steven Stamkos (blood clot), will not play tonight. Tampa Bay is 17-47 on the road against a team with a home winning percentage of greater than .600. Pittsburgh is a sizzling 31-12-1 at home and has it all, third in goals scored, sixth in goals allowed, and fifth in penalty killing. The Penguins have taken off like a rocket since a coaching change in midseason, going 14-2-0 to end the regular season before knocking off the New York Rangers and the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Washington Capitals in the postseason. The Penguins are on a 36-15 run, including 21-5 at home. Tampa Bay was outshot 109-74 combined in the three regular season meetings. They've lost seven of the last eight at Pittsburgh, and the Penguins are 17-4 vs. a team with a winning record. Play Pittsburgh.