NHL Betting Preview: Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Tampa Bay Lightning Game 4 Odds

The Pittsburgh Penguins are favorites for Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final on the road against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday, listed at minus-145 (wager $145 to win $100) at sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark.

After making 44 saves in the 4-2 Game 3 loss on Wednesday, Tampa Bay backup goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy is clearly facing some serious pressure in the stead of the injured Ben Bishop, and his defense will have to step it up if Bishop is unable to return for Game 4.

Phil Kessel continues to thrive in the postseason for the Penguins, scoring his seventh playoff goal in their latest victory and adding an assist to give him a team-leading 16 points (seven goals, nine assists). Kessel fired a team-best eight shots on Vasilevskiy and has four goals in the last four games despite playing more than 20 minutes only once.

Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby has also come alive offensively, netting his second game-winning goal in as many games after going eight games without lighting the lamp.

Crosby has already been a bigger factor in this series than he was against the Washington Capitals in the previous round, when he picked up just two assists in six games. He had six shots on goal in both Games 2 and 3 after not making more than three in any other game this postseason.

For the Lightning, some big decisions will need to be made if they are going to even this series and successfully defend the Eastern Conference title. Bishop and captain Steven Stamkos both practiced with the team on Thursday but are not expected to play.

Stamkos has not played since undergoing surgery to remove a blood clot on April 4. Doctors have yet to clear him to play, but he would give Tampa a boost just by returning to the ice. Bishop’s leg injury is less serious, so he could be back soon.

The second goal of the series by Tampa Bay winger Ondrej Palat with less than two minutes left in Game 3 pushed the over to 15-2-1 in the past 18 meetings between the teams, according to the Odds Shark NHL Database.

Palat is the team’s leading scorer in the Eastern Conference Final with four points (two goals, two assists). He could certainly use some more help from teammates Nikita Kucherov and Tyler Johnson, who are tied for the team's scoring lead with 14 points each in the playoffs but have tallied only three (one goal, two assists) between them through the first three games against the Penguins.