Carolina Hurricanes at Washington Capitals odds, picks and predictions
The Carolina Hurricanes (21-13-4) take on the Washington Capitals (18-12-6) Friday at Capital One Arena. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. ET (ESPN+). Below, we analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Hurricanesvs. Capitals odds, and make our expert NHL picks and predictions.
The Canes are on a 4-game winning streak after their 6-1 demolition of the New York Rangers Tuesday. RW Andrei Svechnikov broke out with 2 goals in the win. After scoring 30 and 23 goals the last 2 years, he’s now up to 8 on the season.
The Caps have lost 5 of 6 after a 6-3 setback against the New Jersey Devils Wednesday. They’re 30th in the NHL with 2.36 goals per game and 31st with an 8.5% shooting percentage. Despite that, they are still 1 point out of a Wild Card spot.
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Hurricanes at Capitals odds
BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 11:35 a.m. ET.
Hurricanes at Capitals projected goalies
Pyotr Kochetkov (10-7-3, 2.53 GAA, .904 SV%, 1 SO) vs. Darcy Kuemper (9-8-2, 3.15 GAA, .893 SV%)
Kochetkov stopped 28 of 29 shots fired his way in his last start against the Rangers. He hasn’t allowed more than 2 goals in 3 straight. He was between the pipes in the Dec. 17 2-1 shootout loss. He stopped 20 of 21 shots fired his way.
Kuemper was in net for the 4-3 win over Pittsburgh Tuesday, and he stopped 32 of 35. He has allowed 13 goals in his last 3 appearances in what has been a down year. He stopped 28 of 29 in the shootout win over Carolina Dec. 17.
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Hurricanes at Capitals picks and predictions
Prediction
Hurricanes 3, Capitals 2
The Canes are 11-10-1 on the road, while the Caps are 9-5-4 at home. This is the final stop on a 3-game road trip for Carolina before the Canes play a lengthy 6-game home set. So that makes this a little dangerous to me that they could come out flat. So dangerous that I’m going to pass on the -175.
As mentioned, Svechnikov got going in the last game with 2 goals. He has 3+ shots in 3 straight games. I’ll take ANDREI SVECHNIKOV OVER 2.5 SHOTS (-140).
I don’t like either side of the puck line here because 4 of the last 6 meetings have ended within a goal. The value just isn’t there.
PASS.
We’ve had fewer than 6 goals in 4 straight meetings between the teams. The Caps’ offense is abysmal, but there is risk that Carolina puts up 4 or more. I’ll lean to recency bias in how tightly these games have been played in recent years and take the UNDER 6 (-110).
