Nicklas Backstrom, Alex Ovechkin, and the Washington Capitals will face off against Aleksander Barkov, Jonathan Huberdeau, and the Florida Panthers at the BB&T Center for an Eastern Conference showdown. The match gets started at 7 p.m. ET on Monday, April 1, and it can be caught live on NBC Sports Washington.
Washington Capitals at Florida Panthers Odds
Washington enters the contest as the favorite with a -135 moneyline. The line for the Panthers is standing at +115 and oddsmakers have put the Over/Under (O/U) at 7 goals (-130 to bet the over, +110 for the under).
Washington is 47-32 straight up (SU) and has earned moneyline bettors 8.0 units this year. 40 of its games have gone over the total, while 36 have gone under and just three have pushed. The Caps are 24-16 SU on the road in 2018-19.
Washington has converted on 21.2 percent of its power play opportunities this season, a figure that’s good enough for ninth-best in the NHL. Its penalty kill is ranked 24th overall, and it has successfully killed off 79.0 percent of all penalties..
Averaging 27.6 saves per game with a .910 save percentage, Braden Holtby (31-27-7) has been the best option in goal for Washington this season. If head coach Todd Reirden chooses to rest him, however, the team may go with Pheonix Copley (17-8-3 record, .906 save percentage, 2.88 goals against average).
On the other bench, Florida is 35-44 straight up (SU) and has lost 14.0 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 79 regular season outings, 45 of its games have gone over the total, while 27 have gone under and just seven have pushed. This year, the team is 19-19 SU as the home team.
The Panthers come into the matchup with the third-strongest power-play unit in the NHL, as they’ve converted on 27.1 percent of their extra-man opportunities this year. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 13th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 80.9 percent of all opponent power plays.
Roberto Luongo (25.2 saves per game) has been the top selection in goal for the Panthers. Luongo has 18 wins, 23 losses, and five OT losses and has maintained a fairly-weak .900 save percentage and 3.10 goals against average this season.
Washington Capitals at Florida Panthers Betting Predictions
Prediction: SU Winner – Panthers, O/U – Under
Betting Notes
- Over Washington’s last ten games, seven of them have been decided by two or more goals (the team is 5-2 in those games).
- Penalties and power plays may prove to be critical in the outcome of this matchup. The Capitals are 19-8 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 31-17 in games where they’re in the penalty box for fewer than 10 minutes, in total. The Panthers are 18-22 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 24-31 in games where their penalty minutes are in the single digits.
- Florida is 3-6 in games decided by a shootout this season while Washington is 4-1 in shootouts.
- Washington may hold the upper hand if this one comes down to the wire. The team’s 18-13 in one-goal games, while Florida is only 14-24 in such games.
- For both of these teams, the game went over the total in four of their last five outings.
- Washington skaters have averaged 6.2 giveaways over its last five home games, an improvement from its season average of 11.6 giveaways per game (ranked 23rd in the NHL).
- Florida is ranked 31st this season with 14.8 giveaways per game. That figure has trended down recently, however, as it’s averaged 13.8 giveaways over its last 10 games and 13.6 giveaways over its last five.
