Final (OT) · All games

TBL 2 – 3 NSH

Tampa Bay Lightning at Nashville Predators. Final. The model's pre-game price is kept below as recorded.

Model
TBL 60%
Expected score
3.3 – 2.8
Market
—
Venue
Bridgestone Arena
Pre-game price

What the model says

Lineups not yet published: each club's usual lineup assumed. Starting goalie not confirmed: goaltending held at league average.

NSH win41%TBL 60%
FinishesNSH reg 29% · OT/SO 11%TBL reg 47% · OT/SO 12%
Most likely finalsTBL 3–2 NSH (7%) · TBL 4–1 NSH (6%) · TBL 2–3 NSH (6%)
Club ratings (Elo)NSH 1481 · TBL 1570by results; last season's, until this one has enough games

Source: CapOrCup game model (derived from club ratings, rest and starters)

Starters · depth chart 2026-09-28

In goal

The league names no starter before puck drop. First on each club's depth chart, from the licensed feed, is the expected starter.

TBL · expected (depth chart)

Andrei Vasilevskiy

Goalie rating 1541 (above the league middle) · +29.4 saved above expected on 2227 shots last season
NSH · expected (depth chart)

Juuse Saros

Goalie rating 1503 (above the league middle) · -1.1 saved above expected on 2483 shots last season
Projected lineups · Sportradar NHL API v7, team depth charts · as of 2026-09-28

Expected lines

What each club intends per the feed's depth chart, with each forward's shooter rating (Elo, against the goalies faced last season). A listing is the club's statement, not a game sheet.

TBL

Tampa Bay Lightning

Head coach Jon Cooper

L1 Ilya Mikheyev (above the league middle) · Brayden Point (below the league middle) · Nikita Kucherov (top tenth of the league)

L2 Brandon Hagel (above the league middle) · Anthony Cirelli (above the league middle) · Jake Guentzel (above the league middle)

L3 Pontus Holmberg (below the league middle) · Zemgus Girgensons (below the league middle) · Jeffrey Viel (bottom tenth of the league)

D1 J.J. Moser (above the league middle) · John Carlson (above the league middle)

D2 Victor Hedman (below the league middle) · Max Crozier (below the league middle)

PP1 Brandon Hagel (above the league middle) · Jake Guentzel (above the league middle) · Nikita Kucherov (top tenth of the league) · Brayden Point (below the league middle) · John Carlson (above the league middle)

NSH

Nashville Predators

Head coach Andrew Brunette

L1 Steven Stamkos (top tenth of the league) · Ryan O'Reilly (below the league middle) · Brady Martin

L2 Filip Forsberg (top tenth of the league) · Matthew Wood (top tenth of the league) · Nils Hoglander (below the league middle)

L3 Alexander Kerfoot · Mavrik Bourque (above the league middle) · Jonathan Marchessault (bottom tenth of the league)

D1 Brady Skjei (below the league middle) · Roman Josi (above the league middle)

D2 Nicolas Hague (above the league middle) · Ryan Ufko

PP1 Matthew Wood (top tenth of the league) · Ryan O'Reilly (below the league middle) · Filip Forsberg (top tenth of the league) · Steven Stamkos (top tenth of the league) · Roman Josi (above the league middle)

Injury listings · as of 2026-09-29

Who the clubs list as out

Club-announced listings relayed by the licensed feed. No cause is inferred; Day To Day players are shown but not counted as out.

TBL · 2 out

Tampa Bay Lightning

Dominic James (C): Out (hand), listed since 2026-09-16, expected back 2026-10-13

Yanni Gourde (C): Out (hip), listed since 2026-09-16, expected back 2026-12-02

NSH · 0 out

Nashville Predators

Nobody listed.

Goals · the league's own clips

5 goals

Each goal links to the league's clip on its own site. Nothing is rehosted.

TBL · P2 03:44 · J. Viel (Z. Girgensons) · clip

TBL · P3 04:54 · J. Viel (P. Holmberg, T. Kralovic) · clip

NSH · P3 13:30 · M. Wood (R. Ufko, R. Josi) · clip

NSH · P3 17:41 · M. Wood (J. Ahcan) · clip

NSH · P4 02:33 · F. Nilsson · clip

Replay review once the condensed game has been read · Ledger