It’s a small slate of games across the NHL on Friday night but we do have an intriguing matchup between the Carolina Hurricanes and the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena in DC. The puck is scheduled to drop at 7:07 PM EST. Carolina is red-hot at the moment, winning four in a row. They just hammered a very good New York Rangers team 6-1 on Tuesday evening and will come into this one well-rested. The Caps on the other hand just lost 6-3 to the New Jersey Devils a couple of nights ago and have dropped five of their last six. Below, find the Hurricanes vs Capitals picks.
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The Hurricanes are the favorite here with -171 odds to win. The Capitals come back at +152. The total in goals is set at six. Carolina has won four of the last five meetings with Washington, but the Caps were victorious back in December by a score of 2-1.
The Hurricanes were in the mix deep in the playoffs and it looks like that’ll be the case again. Carolina is second place in the Metropolitan Division with a 21-13-4 record, only seven points behind the Rangers in top spot. On both ends of the ice, this is a very good team. They rank ninth in goals scored with 3.39 per contest and fourth in shots on goal. Leading the way is none other than Sebastian Aho, who has 15 goals and 28 assists in 35 appearances. Seth Jarvis is also enjoying a nice season with 13 goals and 14 assists.
There is a really nice balance of talent throughout this roster. Nine different players have 20 or more points, which shows just how many guys can produce at any given moment. The talent was on full display against the Rangers earlier in the week, with Andrei Svechnikov scoring twice on his own. Jack Drury, Jordan Martinook, Jalen Chatfield, and Michael Bunting all found the back of the net as well. In between the posts, Pyotr Kochetkov made 28 saves on 29 shots.
This was the definition of a statement win and shows just how special of a group the Canes have. Before that, Carolina also took down the Nashville Predators, the Montreal Canadiens, and the Toronto Maple Leafs. Friday’s game marks the end of a three-game road trip and given their recent track record against Washington, there’s a good chance this will be another victory, making it five consecutive.
The Capitals are in sixth in the Metropolitan with an 18-12-6 record, which is respectable. But, it’s hard to even understand how they’re doing this well considering the team’s brutal offense. Washington is 30th in the NHL with a mere 2.36 goals per game and ranks towards the bottom of the league in numerous other offensive categories. A big reason they’re staying afloat is a decent blue line. The Caps are conceding only 2.89 goals per night, the 11th-best mark in the NHL.
While Alex Ovechkin is a living legend, there’s no way he should be the best player on this team at his age. Ovi’s eight goals and 16 assists lead the charge, while Dylan Strome has 13 goals and nine assists, too. To put their struggles into perspective, DC has just three players with more than 20 points apiece. Compared to the Hurricanes, it’s night and day. The Devils did make the Caps look foolish the other night though, putting six past netminder Hunter Shepard. For Washington, Evgeny Kuznetsov, John Carlson, and Connor McMichael scored.
I can’t bet against the Hurricanes with the way they’re playing. I’ll take them to win this one and continue the winning streak.
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