Chicago Blackhawks vs. Tampa Bay Lightning Preview. The Blackhawks recalled defenseman Ethan Del Mastro and sent down Wyatt Kaiser on Wednesda

Welcome back to NHL Predictions. Each day, Last Word on Hockey takes a look at the games that are scheduled and offers insight and analysis to help predict who will be victorious in head-to-head matchups.

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The Bolts have dominated its series with the Blackhawks since 2017, and our expert NHL predictions expect Tampa Bay's dominance to continue tonight at Chicago.

Smith hasn’t appeared in a game since a 3-1 victory over Colorado on Jan. 8. He also was on injured reserve with a back injury from Dec. 20 until Dec. 31.

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The Tampa Bay Lightning do not have the results to show for the effort halfway through their four-game road trip, but coach Jon Cooper and his group like the on-ice showing.

When the Tampa Bay Lightning face the Chicago Blackhawks at United Center on Friday (beginning at 8:00 PM ET), Nikita Kucherov and Connor Bedard will be two of the most exciting players to watch. Buy tickets for this matchup at StubHub!

Tyler Bertuzzi will be on the ice when the Chicago Blackhawks and Tampa Bay Lightning meet at United Center on Friday, starting at 8:00 PM ET. Fancy a wager on Bertuzzi? We have some numbers and figures to assist you along the way.

The Tampa Bay Lightning (28-15-6) are set to take on the Chicago Blackhawks (14-29-4) on Friday night at the United Center in Chicago. This matchup pits one of the league’s perennial contenders against a team deep in rebuild mode.

Take the over. The over is 5-4-1 in the last 10 meetings between these two teams. It’s also 4-1-1 in the Lightning’s last five games overall and is 7-2-1 in the Blackhawks’ last 10 games overall. Chicago has scored three or more goals in five of its last seven games and has allowed at least three goals in six consecutive games.

Jake Guentzel and the Tampa Bay Lightning meet the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday at 8:00 PM ET, at United Center. If you’d like to make a wager on Guentzel’s prop bets, we’ve got plenty of info to help you below.