Free NHL Hockey Prediction: Capitals vs Penguins NHL Odds
Looking for Washington Capitals vs. Pittsburgh Penguins free hockey plays & NHL Odds? NHL betting sees the Capitals taking on the Penguins on Monday May 8th at the PPG Paints Center in Pittsburgh, PA for game 6. Cappers Picks provides complimentary expert handicapping picks on all NHL Hockey matchups all season long so stay tuned for more FREE daily NHL hockey predictions.
(2-3-0) Washington Capitals vs. Pittsburgh Penguins (3-2-0)
2017 NHL Playoffs: Eastern Conference Semi Finals Game 6
Date: Monday May 8th
Time: 7:30 PM
Venue: PPG Paints Center in Pittsburgh, PA
NHL Hockey Moneyline Odds: Pittsburgh -110
NHL Hockey Puck Line Odds:
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The Capitals fought back their way into the series, earning a critical game 5 win to keep their playoff hopes alive and head back to Pittsburgh. The Penguins still lead the series 3-2 and look to close out on home ice.
Washington Capitals
The Caps have life again, but will not have any safety net as one loss and they’re still out. They’ll have the tough task of earning a “W” in Pittsburgh, where the Penguins have only lost once this postseason, in OT in game 3 to the Caps.
Nicklas Backstrom, Andre Burakovsky and Braden Holtby were Game 5’s three stars, and the Caps will need more of the same in game 6 to take the series to a one game showdown at home.
Backstrom is Washington’s leader on the score sheet with 11 points, one ahead of TJ Oshie, who has arguably been their best player.
Braden Holtby tallied a .909 SV% in game 5, a mark which he’ll likely need to improve upon in Pittsburgh on Monday. Holtby doesn’t sit in the top-5 in either SV% or GAA this postseason.
Pittsburgh Penguins
The Penguins superstar captain, Sidney Crosby, returned to action for game 5, and with a couple additional days following his game 3 injury, should play a crucial role in leading his team trying to close out the series.
Evgeni Malkin has been the best forward in the playoffs to date, registering an NHL best 17 points in 10 games thus far. Phil Kessel and Jake Guentzel both also sit top-5 in playoff scoring, with 13 and 12 points, respectively.
The Game 5 loss cannot be pegged to the play of Marc-Andre Fleury, but a stronger performance in front of the home crowd certainly won’t hurt the Pens’ chances.
Fleury owns a 2.56 GAA and a .929 SV%, in what has been a great story this postseason seeing him reprise
the starting role.
NHL Betting Trends:
- Under is 10-2-3 in Washington’s last 15 games vs the Metropolitan
- Over is 5-1-4 in Washington’s last 10 Monday games
- Washington are 17-5 in their last 22 Monday games
- This Penguins have 3 of the top 5 scorers in the playoffs
- Under is 6-1-1 in the Penguins’ last 8 home games
- Pittsburgh is 35-15 in their last 53 games as a favorite
Free Washington Capitals vs. Pittsburgh Penguins NHL Playoff Prediction:
With Sidney Crosby growing closer to full health and being on the bench to lead his team at home, I like the Penguins to close out the series here.
Evgeni Malkin hasn’t slowed his pace since the start of playoffs, and with the secondary scoring of Crosby, Guentzel and Kessel, I think they overpower the Caps here to ensure they don’t need to head back to DC.
4* Free NHL Betting Pick: Pittsburgh -110
NHL Free Score Prediction: Washington 3 – Pittsburgh 4
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