Early look · NHL 2026-27

Vancouver Canucks at Tampa Bay Lightning: game preview

VancouverCanucks2026-27: 2-2-0 · 4 pts · 2025-26: 25-49-8 · 58 pts · 32ndat

Tampa BayLightning2026-27: 2-1-0 · 4 pts · 2025-26: 50-26-6 · 106 pts · 5th

Puck drop17 Oct · 4:00 PM ET

VenueBenchmark International Arena

All-time meetings48 completed

BasisLast 5 meetings + 2025-26

The thesis

Forty-eight points apart last season

Vancouver finished last season 32nd in the league on 58 points. Tampa Bay finished 5th on 106.

Game-day prices arrive with the afternoon snapshot, about 4:30 PM ET on the day of the game.

Head-to-head

Meeting number 49

Across 48 completed games, Tampa Bay lead the head-to-head 25-20-3.

All-time record25-20-3Tampa Bay's record in the series

Meetings played48This is number 49

2025-26 series—

Last 53-2Tampa Bay

Last 5 meetings

See all: Last 5 meetings →

DateResultShotsPower playWinner

19 Mar 2026TBL 6 – VAN 2——TBL

16 Nov 2025VAN 6 – TBL 2——VAN

8 Dec 2024TBL 4 – VAN 2——TBL

15 Oct 2024VAN 1 – TBL 4——TBL

12 Dec 2023TBL 1 – VAN 4——VAN

Head-to-head finder

The table on each 2025-26 meeting night

DateVancouverTampa Bay

16 Nov 20259-9-2 · 20 pts24th9-7-2 · 20 pts22nd

19 Mar 202621-39-8 · 50 pts32nd42-21-4 · 88 pts6th

League rank after that night's games; a longer bar is a higher place. On 16 Nov 2025, Vancouver were 24th in the league and Tampa Bay 22nd. By 19 Mar 2026 it was 32nd and 6th.

Where the shots come from · last 5 meetings

Tampa Bay out-attempted Vancouver 116 to 87

Every attempt from the last meetings, both teams shooting right.

Vancouver Canucks

87 att · 39 on goal · 8 G · 20.5%

Crease8 att · 3 G

Slot27 att · 3 G

Wing24 att · 1 G

Point23 att · 0 G

Neutral zone5 att · 1 G

Tampa Bay Lightning

116 att · 61 on goal · 8 G · 13.1%

Crease21 att · 1 G

Slot37 att · 3 G

Wing36 att · 4 G

Point20 att · 0 G

Neutral zone2 att · 0 G

GoalOn goalMissedBlocked

Expected goals

Tampa Bay have created the better chances, last 10 games

Shot quality both ways: expected goals weigh every unblocked attempt by its chance of scoring. Finishing above zero means more goals than the chances.

VancouverTampa Bay

2.44xG for per game4.04

3.15xG against per game2.64

43.6%xG share60.5%

+9.2FinishingGoals minus expected goals−4.1

−5.4GoaltendingExpected goals against minus goals allowed+0.9

This season: 4 games for Vancouver, 3 for Tampa Bay. Small sample: early-season xG moves a lot from night to night.

Every team’s xG →

Special teams

Power play and penalty kill, season and series

This season's rates first, then 2025-26 and the last meetings between the two. Power-play chances are counted from the penalty log with coincidental minors cancelled; faceoffs are each club's wins over draws taken.

All bars share one scale · 0–100%SeasonLast meetings

Vancouver

Small sample

Power play · 2026-2723.1%

Power play · 2025-2621.8% · 14th

Power play · last 5 meetings—

Penalty kill · 2026-2768.8%

Penalty kill · 2025-2671.5% · 32nd

Faceoffs · 2026-2749.3% · 112/227

Drawn · 2026-2713 (3.25/gm)

Drawn · last meetings0 (0.00/gm)

Shorthanded · 2026-2716 (4.00/gm)

PP goals · last meetings0

Tampa Bay

Small sample

Power play · 2026-270.0%

Power play · 2025-2620.7% · 17th

Power play · last 5 meetings—

Penalty kill · 2026-2785.7%

Penalty kill · 2025-2682.6% · 3rd

Faceoffs · 2026-2748.2% · 81/168

Drawn · 2026-2713 (4.33/gm)

Drawn · last meetings0 (0.00/gm)

Shorthanded · 2026-277 (2.33/gm)

PP goals · last meetings0

Skaters

Skaters to watch

Each club's top three forwards and defencemen by points this season, with 2025-26 one tap away.

Goaltending

Who has stopped this matchup

Save percentage in the last meetings by goalie. Starters are confirmed on game day.

Expected startersAn estimate until the teams confirmEvery game tonight →

Vancouver

Expected starter after their game on 15 Oct: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.

Tampa Bay

Expected starter after their game on 15 Oct: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.

Vancouver crease

VAN · 2026-27 Starter estimate from 14 Oct

Kevin Lankinen.8243 GP · 1-2-0 · GSAx −6.4

Leevi Meriläinen.9432 GP · 1-0-0 · GSAx +1.0

No appearances against Tampa Bay in the last meetings.

Tampa Bay crease

TBL · 2026-27 Starter estimate from 14 Oct

Andrei Vasilevskiy.8983 GP · 2-1-0 · GSAx +1.0

No appearances against Vancouver in the last meetings.

Totals

Scoring rates point to about 6.6 goals

No total is posted yet: it arrives with the game-day prices. Until then, the scoring rates and the recent meetings set the range.

Goals in the last 5 meetings

19 Mar 20268 · TBL 6–2 VAN

16 Nov 20258 · VAN 6–2 TBL

8 Dec 20246 · TBL 4–2 VAN

15 Oct 20245 · VAN 1–4 TBL

12 Dec 20235 · TBL 1–4 VAN

Bar length is total goals, coloured by the winner.

Scoring rates

Team26-27 GF26-27 GA25-26 GF25-26 GA

Vancouver4.754.502.633.85

Tampa Bay2.672.333.542.82

Goals for and against per game. The estimate averages each team’s scoring with the other’s goals allowed, and leans on 2025-26 until a team has played 20 games.

Scoring rates suggest6.6Goals in this game

Last 5 meetings6.4Goals per game

Line—No total posted yet

Books at the line—With the game-day prices

Team news

8 on the injury lists

Vancouver · injuries

Akil ThomasUndisclosedIRReturn11 Oct

Filip ChytilShoulderIRReturn8 Oct

Jack ThompsonUndisclosedIRReturn11 Oct

Mackenzie MacEachernUndisclosedIRReturn10 Oct

Thatcher DemkoHipIRReturn21 Dec

Tampa Bay · injuries

Dominic JamesHandIRReturn8 Oct

Emil LillebergUndisclosedOutReturn13 Oct

Yanni GourdeHipIRReturn2 Dec

Latest moves

See all: Latest moves →

27 Sep · VAN

Placed G Nikita Tolopilo on waivers.

25 Sep · VAN

Claimed G Leevi Merilainen off waivers from Ottawa. Placed F Filip Chytil on injured reserve. Assigned F Braeden Cootes to Abbotsford (AHL).

24 Sep · VAN

Assigned Fs Ty Mueller, Riley Patterson, Ilya Safonov and Chase Wouters, Ds Kirill Kudryavtsev and Sawyer Mynio to Abbotsford (AHL). Loaned F Ben Berard and D Isaac Belliveau to Abbotsford. Waived for the purpose of assignment to Abbotsford F Trey Fix-Wolansky and Ds Cole Clayton and Jimmy Schuldt.

6 Oct · TBL

Placed C Jansen Harkins on waivers.

27 Sep · TBL

Placed D Michael Callahan on waivers.

27 Sep · TBL

Placed D Michael Callahan, G Mads Sogaard Nielsenon, LD Maxim Groshev, LW Jakob Pelletier and C Nicholas Abruzzese on waivers.

Injury report

Vancouver · 2026 draft

See all: Vancouver · 2026 draft →

#3Caleb MalhotraRound 1 · BrantfordC

#24Adam NovotnyRound 1 · PeterboroughLW

#33Brooks RogowskiRound 2 · OshawaC

#41Niklas Aaram-OlsenRound 2 · Orebro Jr.LW

Full draft

Tampa Bay · 2026 draft

See all: Tampa Bay · 2026 draft →

#52Oleg KulebiakinRound 2 · HalifaxRW

#90Tomas KralovicRound 3 · BratislavaD

#134Morgan AnderbergRound 5 · VaxjoC

#154Cooper SollerRound 5 · Sioux FallsC

Full draft

Saturday 17 October · the full slate

See all: Saturday 17 October · the full slate →

TBLThis game 6:00 PM ET

Updated after every final

Vancouver Canucks at Tampa Bay Lightning: game preview

Forty-eight points apart last season

Meeting number 49

Last 5 meetings

The table on each 2025-26 meeting night

Tampa Bay out-attempted Vancouver 116 to 87

Vancouver Canucks

Tampa Bay Lightning

Tampa Bay have created the better chances, last 10 games

Power play and penalty kill, season and series

Vancouver

Tampa Bay

Skaters to watch

Forwards to watch

Defencemen to watch

Who has stopped this matchup

Vancouver crease

Tampa Bay crease

Scoring rates point to about 6.6 goals

Goals in the last 5 meetings

Scoring rates

8 on the injury lists

Vancouver · injuries

Tampa Bay · injuries

Latest moves

Vancouver · 2026 draft

Tampa Bay · 2026 draft

Saturday 17 October · the full slate