Hurricanes vs. Capitals Free NHL Picks and Odds Breakdown (Archive)
Easily the marquee matchup on Monday’s NHL schedule is a potential Eastern Conference playoff preview as Carolina visits Washington. Which way to lean at BMR’s top-rated sportsbooks?
Carolina Hurricanes vs. Washington Capitals
Monday, March 28, 2022 – 07:00 PM EDT at Capital One Arena
Five games on the NHL slate Monday, and this is the lone one to start at 7 p.m. EDT and also the only nationally televised game of the night, shown on the NHL Network.
This could be a first-round playoff preview depending on where the teams finish. Carolina is battling for the Metropolitan Division title, and I think wins it. The Canes are -550 heavy favorites to do so at BMR’s top-rated books.
Washington could finish third in the Metro but more likely will be a Wild-Card team. Whether the Caps are the first or second Wild-Card club would determine whether or not they face the Hurricanes in Round 1 of the playoffs if Carolina indeed wins the division.
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Perhaps Carolina would prefer not to see Washington in the postseason considering the Capitals lead the season series 3-0 in a surprise. Washington scored exactly four goals in each win, most recently a 4-3 shootout win in North Carolina on March 18.
Alex Ovechkin tied the game with about five minutes left and then scored the shootout winner. He has three goals in the series. Ilya Samsonov is 2-0 with a 2.40 GAA and .903 save percentage and Vitek Vanecek pitched a shutout in his lone start.
Seth Jarvis leads the Canes with two goals in the series – the only Carolina player with multiple points. Frederik Andersen is 0-2-2 with a 3.57 GAA and .877 SV, and Antti Raanta 0-0-1 with a 2.77 GAA and .925 SV.
Hurricanes Goaltender Issue?
Might Carolina have a goaltending controversy on its hands? Frederik Andersen is currently the No. 1 and has great season numbers: 31-10-3 with a 2.07 goals-against average and .926 save percentage, but he might be fading as the Dane has lost four of his past five.
Antti Raanta, meanwhile, looked quite good Saturday in a 7-2 win at St. Louis and is 11-4-3 with a 2.31 GAA and .919 SV. Sounds like it will be Andersen here, though. On the road, he’s 15-6-1 with a 2.17 GAA.
Both Andrei Svechnikov and Seth Jarvis had two goals against the Blues. Jarvis will get some votes for the Calder Trophy, which goes to the NHL’s top rookie, but he won’t win it. He has 12 goals and 14 assists in 51 games. He was the No. 13 overall NHL pick in the 2020 draft. The seven goals Saturday matched a season-high. Carolina is one of the better offensive teams in the league, averaging 3.31 goals per game.
The Canes’ big move ahead of the Trade Deadline was acquiring forward Max Domi from Columbus. He has yet to have a point in two games with his new club. The team is without winger Jordan Martinook (10 points in 44 games) for another week due to injury.
Carolina is 1-4 on the NHL odds in its past five on the road.
Ovechkin Continues to Make History for Caps
Washington is off a 4-3 home win over New Jersey on Saturday as superstar Alex Ovechkin made more history. He had the game-winning goal at 11:48 of the third period, his 121st winner all-time. That tied him for second-most in NHL history with Gordie Howe. Jaromir Jagr holds the record with 135.
Ovechkin also tied Jari Kurri of the Edmonton Oilers for 21st in NHL history with 1,398 points. Ovi is fourth in the NHL this season with 42 goals at age 36. He is just the sixth player in NHL history to score 40 or more goals at age 36 or older (Teemu Selanne, Brendan Shanahan, John Bucyk, Howe, and Phil Esposito) and reached the mark for the 12th time in his career, which tied Wayne Gretzky for the most in NHL history.
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Evgeny Kuznetsov had an assist Saturday and his 12-game points streak is a career-high. His 1.02 points per game rate this season (64 points in 63 games) is the second-highest of his career, only behind his 1.05 rate during the 2017-18 season, when he set career highs in goals (27) and points (83). The Capitals have a 30-12-4 record when Kuznetsov records a point this season.
Winger TJ Oshie returned from injury Saturday and was minus 1 in 13:46 of ice time. He has been in and out of the lineup all season and has eight goals and 12 assists in 29 games. Center Nic Dowd (17 points) missed a fourth straight game with an upper-body injury Saturday. He might be able to return here. Winger Carl Hagelin (14 points) is on a long-term injured reserve.
Should be Vitek Vanecek in the net. He stopped 35 shots Saturday to improve to 17-9-5 with a 2.45 goals-against average and .917 save percentage. He has been slightly worse at home with a 2.47 GAA. In six of their nine wins this month, the Capitals have rallied from a third-period deficit.
Prediction
Washington is 6-0 on the NHL odds in its past six vs. the Eastern Conference. The Caps have won seven of the past nine at home in this series, and we like that to continue.
Score Prediction: Washington 4, Carolina 3
NHL Pick: Capitals (+120) at BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review)
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.