In their second head-to-head meeting of the regular season, the Washington Capitals and the New York Rangers collide at Madison Square Garden. NBC Sports Network will showcase this divisional matchup, which gets going at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday, November 20.
Washington Capitals vs. New York Rangers Odds
Washington (-165) is favored over New York (+145) and oddsmakers at PointsBet have set the Over/Under (O/U) at 7 goals. The odds for betting the total stand at -130 for the over and +110 for the under.
Washington is 16-7 straight up (SU) and has earned moneyline bettors 6.8 units this year. 16 of its contests have gone over the total, while seven have gone under and none have pushed. This 2019-20 Capitals team is 10-2 SU on the road.
Washington has converted on 24.3 percent of its power play chances this season, a mark that places them in the top-10 among NHL teams. On the other hand, it has the seventh-strongest penalty kill in the league, and it’s successfully killed off 85.2 percent of all penalties.
For the team as a whole, Washington has been penalized 4.0 times per game this season, and 5.4 per game over its last five road outings. The team’s been forced to kill penalties 10.8 minutes per contest over their last five road games.
With a .906 save percentage and 27.3 saves per game, Braden Holtby (11-5-3) has been the primary option in goal for Washington this year. If head coach Todd Reirden chooses to rest him, however, the team may go with Ilya Samsonov (5-3-1 record, .912 save percentage, 2.65 goals against average).
The visiting Capitals have relied on John Carlson and Alex Ovechkin this year. Carlson has 34 points via eight goals and 26 assists, and has recorded multiple points 10 times. Ovechkin has 15 goals and 10 assists to his name (and has registered a point in 15 games).
On the other side of the ice, New York is 8-10 straight up (SU) and has earned 0.1 units for moneyline bettors this year. Nine of its games have gone over the total, while another nine have gone under and none have pushed. This season, the team’s 5-6 SU at home.
New York has converted on 20.6 percent of its power play opportunities this season, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 29th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 73.2 percent of all penalties.
The Rangers have been penalized 5.0 times per game this season, 5.2 per game over their last five games total, and 4.6 per game over their last five at home. The team’s had to defend opponent power plays a whopping 15.4 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Henrik Lundqvist (31.3 saves per game) has been the top choice in the crease for New York. Lundqvist has four wins, seven losses, and one OT loss and has maintained a poor .905 save percentage and 3.54 goals against average this year.
The home team will be led on offense by Artemi Panarin (nine goals, 14 assists).
Washington Capitals at New York Rangers Betting Predictions
Pick: SU Winner – Capitals
Betting Trends
For both of these teams, the total has gone over in three of their past five matches.
The Capitals are 5-3 in games where they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 8-5 when they’re in the penalty box for fewer than 10 total minutes.
New York skaters have created 10.0 takeaways per game over its last five home games, an improvement over its season average of 8.8 takeaways per game (ranked 5th in the league).
Washington skaters have averaged 8.4 takeaways per game over its last five road games, an improvement over its season average of 7.7 takeaways per game (ranked 14th in the league).
Washington could hold an advantage if it’s a tight one late. The team’s 8-5 in one-goal games, while New York is 2-4 in such games.
