Lightning at Blue Jackets 4/14/19 - NHL Picks & Predictions

The Lightning have to figure out where they have went wrong in this series. The Lightning have come into the games and while they had the huge advantage in the first game, the second game they were completely lost. The Lighting could not score and what is really a big shock is the Lightning were unable to protect the net against the Blue Jackets offense that put in a ton of pressure.

What could make it even harder for the Lighting coming into this game is they may be without Nikita Kucherov who may be facing a suspension in the games coming up. The reason is he was caught boarding an opponent and not only had a five minute major, but got a game misconduct penalty. Now, the safety committee is reviewing the penalty and if he is lost it would be a major blow to the already lackluster offense of the Lightning in the playoffs. The Blue Jackets were projected by a lot of people to be swept in this series, but it has been anything but that. The Blue Jackets have been playing at a level of play that they had not reached in the playoffs in years. What else is impressive is the way the Blue Jackets defense has been able to contain what was the best offense in the NHL and with the potential loss of Kucherov in the series it could really help the Blue Jackets out even more.

Sergei Bobrovsky is really making his case for a big contract in the off season from a team though. He has been playing amazing hockey for the Blue Jackets in the playoffs and while his regular season was not really that impressive to start off with, he has really come to life in the playoffs and looks amazing.