Two teams that split their season series (one game apiece) last year, the Washington Capitals and the nhl.coCanucks meet at Rogers Arena for a cross-continent matchup. Sportsnet Pacific will air the matchup, and the opening face-off is at 10 p.m. ET on Monday, October 22.
Washington Capitals vs. Vancouver Canucks Odds
Washington heads into the matchup as the heavy favorite with a -150 moneyline. The line for Vancouver sits at +130, and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at an even 6 goals. The odds for betting the total sit at -115 money on the over and -105 for the under.
Earning 5.8 units for moneyline bettors, Vancouver is 5-3 straight up (SU) overall this year. That win percentage, the NHL’s fifth-strongest so far this season, is a surprising turnaround from how the team performed during the 2017-18 season (31-51). Of the team’s eight regular season contests, five have gone under the total, while three have gone over and none have pushed. The team’s 2-0 SU at home so far this year.
The Nucks have successfully converted on 22.7 percent of their power play opportunities in 2018-19. That mark hasn’t moved a lot from last season, when they were ranked eighth in the league by scoring on 21.5 percent of their extra-man chances. Their penalty kill has gotten stronger year-over-year as they’ve gone from successfully defending 78.6 percent of opponents’ power plays (ranked 21st overall last season) to 83.9 percent this year.
The Canucks, as a collective unit, have been penalized 4.8 times per game this season, a number that’s climbed some from last year’s 3.7 penalties per game they gave up. After serving an average of 8.7 penalty minutes per game a year ago, the team’s had to stave off opponent power plays for a taxing 12.3 minutes per matchup this season.
Boasting a .903 save percentage and 30.3 saves per game, Jacob Markstrom (2-2) has been the primary goalkeeper for the Nucks this year. If head coach Travis Green chooses to give him the night off, however, Vancouver might roll with Anders Nilsson (3-1-1 record, .925 save percentage, 2.26 goals against average).
The Nucks will continue looking for leadership out of Elias Pettersson and Bo Horvat. Pettersson (eight points) is up to five goals and three assists while Horvat has five goals and one to his credit so far in the early stages of the season.
Over on the other bench, Washington is 3-4 straight up (SU) and has lost 1.6 units for moneyline bettors this year. Through seven regular season outings, five of its games have gone over the total, while two have gone under the total and none have pushed. As a road team, the Capitals are 0-2 SU so far.
The Caps have scored on 38.5 percent of their power play chances this year after converting on 24.1 percent of their extra-man opportunities in 2017-18 (which ranked them fifth in the league in that category). The team has gone from killing off 79.4 percent of opponent power plays (ranked 19th overall last season) to 72.4 percent this year.
Washington’s skaters have been penalized 4.7 times per game this season. Last year, that number was at 4.0, which was the seventh-highest mark in the league. After serving an average of 9.5 penalty minutes per game a year ago (seventh-most in the league), the team’s had to kill penalties for 10.3 minutes per matchup this season.
Braden Holtby (24.7 saves per game) has been the main choice in goal for Washington. Holtby has three wins, three losses, and two overtime losses to his credit, while registering a .881 save percentage and 3.73 goals against average this year.
Evgeny Kuznetsov (four goals, eight assists) has been one of the primary playmakers on offense for the visiting Capitals.
Washington Capitals at Vancouver Canucks Betting Predictions
Free NHL Tip: SU Winner – Canucks, O/U – Over
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Notes
Betting Notes
After winning three of their four shootouts last year, Washington is off to a 0-1 start in shootouts this season. Vancouver went 0-5 in shootouts last year and has yet to participate in one this time around.
The total has gone under in each of Vancouver’s last five outings.
Washington skaters registered 24.2 hits per game last season, while the Nucks logged 21.3 hits per contest.
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