The Washington Capitals head to MSG tonight to face the New York Rangers in an exciting Metropolitan Division battle.
Washington has been the better team all season and has already beaten New York twice — they’ve outscored them 12-7 in those 2 games. So, of course, the Capitals enter as slight road favorites at -120 on the moneyline, while the Rangers sit at even odds to win outright.
This game is showcasing 2 teams trending in very different directions.
The Caps have been consistent all year and hold first place in the division with a solid 86 points. In fact, they have the most points in the Eastern Conference and it’s not even close as the next team closest to them has 79 points.
The Rangers, meanwhile, are fighting to stay in playoff position, sitting at 66 points and struggling to even hold a wild card position, which, after last night's games, they hold the 2nd wild card seed.
With such a gap between these 2 NHL powerhouses, why are the odds as close as they are? For that, we’ll have to dig a little deeper.
Goaltending could be the difference-maker in this game, and when you take a look at the starters, it’s clear that Washington holds the clear edge.
Logan Thompson has been excellent all season with a 26-4-5 record with a 2.32 GAA and an insane .918 save percentage. His time in the net has been a big reason why the Capitals have allowed just 2.59 goals per game, which puts them 4th overall in the NHL.
On the other side, Igor Shesterkin has been somewhat inconsistent for the Rangers. He has a .906 save percentage, which isn’t bad, but a 2.86 GAA, ranking 30th in the NHL. The Rangers are giving up more goals than they should, which has cost them dearly in tight games.
Offensively, Washington has been more dangerous as well as they’re scoring 3.59 goals per game compared to the Rangers’ 3.05.
Dylan Strome has been the leading playmaker for the Caps as he’s put up 60 points on the season with 42 assists to get him there. Alex Ovechkin, as always, has been a goal-scoring machine, leading the team with 31 goals and 8 on the PP unit. He’s still chasing The Great One’s all-time goal record and is only 11 goals away.
New York’s best offensive weapon has been Artemi Panarin, who leads the team with 63 points of which 25 are goals. He has been their most consistent scorer, of course, but the Rangers have struggled to generate offense beyond him. The team’s depth has been a problem all season and has hurt them against deeper teams like Washington.
Washington has been playing some seriously solid hockey as they’ve gone 5-3-2 in their last 10 games while averaging 3.59 goals during that span. In fact, they’re just ahead of Tampa Bay for GF/G to hold the #1 spot in the NHL.
The Rangers, despite their up-and-downs, have managed to notch 7 wins in their last 10 games, but their defensive issues still remain a major concern. They have allowed an average of 3.00 GA/G, which is a bad sign against a Capitals team that has had no trouble scoring against them this season.
The Capitals already own 2 convincingly dominant wins over New York this year. In their first matchup, Washington won 5-3, then followed that up with an even more dominant 7-4 win.
The Rangers haven’t been able to slow down the Capitals’ attack even a little bit. With Shesterkin’s struggles, they could be in for another long night even though it’s on their home ice.
Washington has controlled this matchup so far. We have no reason to believe that changes in this battle.
The Capitals have the better goaltender, the deeper offense, and the advantage in recent head-to-head games. The Rangers are coming off a few solid wins which could play to their momentum, but these wins were against weaker teams. However, they haven’t been able to get the job done against powerful opponents like the Capitals.
BettorsInsider Prediction: Capitals 5, Rangers 3
Best Bet: Capitals -1.5
The Capitals should win in what we feel will be a high-scoring game. They’ll continue their dominance over the Rangers this season and add 2 more points to their already illustrious season.
The best bet is for Washington to win on the puck line at -205. Their offensive firepower, combined with Thompson’s strong play between the pipes, should be enough to get the job done by at least 2 goals.