Two teams that have put themselves firmly in the playoff hunt, the Washington Capitals and the San Jose Sharks meet at the SAP Center. The opening face-off is at 10:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, December 3, and you can see this East-West matchup live on NBC Sports Washington.
Washington Capitals vs. San Jose Sharks Odds
San Jose (+100) is playing the role of underdog to Washington (-120) and the Over/Under (O/U) is placed at 7 goals. If gamblers want to put some action on this game’s total, they’ll be looking at odds of -105 for the over and -115 for the under.
Washington is 19-9 straight up (SU) and has earned 6.4 units for moneyline bettors this season. 19 of its outings have gone over the total, while nine have gone under and none have pushed. The Caps are 11-3 SU on the road in 2019-20.
Washington has converted on 25.3 percent of its power play chances this season, a figure that’s good enough for fourth-best in the NHL. Additionally, its penalty kill is ranked 13th overall, and it has successfully killed off 83.0 percent of its penalties.
Washington, as a collective unit, has been penalized 4.1 times per game in the 2019-20 season, 4.4 per game over its last five outings total, and 4.2 per game over its last five road outings. The team has had to stave off opponent power plays 9.0 minutes per contest over their last five road games.
Averaging 27.9 saves per game with a .909 save percentage, Braden Holtby (13-7-4) has been the best option in goal for Washington this year. If head coach Todd Reirden chooses to rest him, however, Washington might turn to Ilya Samsonov (6-3-1), who has a .914 save percentage and 2.58 goals against average this year.
The visiting Capitals have relied on John Carlson and Alex Ovechkin this year. Carlson has 37 points on eight goals and 29 assists, and has recorded multiple points in 11 different games. Ovechkin has 20 goals and 11 assists to his creditand has notched a point in 18 games.
Over on the other bench, San Jose is 15-13 straight up (SU) and has lost 0.4 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through 28 regular season matches, 14 of its games have gone over the total, while 13 have gone under and just one has pushed. This year, the team is 9-6 SU at home.
San Jose has converted on 17.2 percent of its power play chances this year, a mark that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked first overall, and it’s successfully killed off 91.0 percent of all penalties.
San Jose players have been sent to the penalty box 4.4 times per game this season, and 3.6 per game over their last five at home. The team’s been forced to defend opponent power plays 9.4 minutes per game over their last five home outings.
Martin Jones (25.1 saves per game) has been the top option in the crease for San Jose. Jones has 12 wins, 10 losses, and one OT loss to his credit and has recorded a fairly-weak .896 save percentage and 3.03 goals against average this season.
The Sharks will be led on offense by Logan Couture (eight goals, 20 assists).
Washington Capitals vs. San Jose Sharks Free Picks
Pick: SU Winner – Capitals, O/U – Under
Betting Trends
- The under has hit in three of San Jose’s last five outings.
- The Capitals are 5-3 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 10-5 when they serve fewer than 10 penalty minutes, in total.
- Washington (3-2 in shootouts this season) has more experience in games decided by shootout. San Jose, however, emerged victorious in both of its shootouts this year.
- San Jose has managed 12.0 takeaways per game over its last five home games, an improvement over its season average of 8.6 takeaways per game (ranked 7th).
- Washington has averaged 4.3 goals per game, while giving up just 2.7, over their three-game winning streak.
- Washington has forced 9.2 takeaways per game over its last five road games, an improvement over its season average of 7.9 takeaways per game (ranked 13th in the NHL).
