Philadelphia Flyers vs. Washington Capitals Prediction:
The second annual NHL Hockey Frenzy night is in the books, and my head is still spinning. Trying to absorb 16 games in eight hours is both fun and exhausting. From a betting perspective, Underdogs went 7-9, highlighted by the Columbus Blue Jackets (+160) and the Detroit Red Wings (+150) as the two highest payouts. Detroit had just 11 shots on goal in the victory, with Patrick Kane scoring on the Wings’ first shot. A couple of other betting-related notes from Tuesday included 11 winning teams covering the puck line (-1.5 goals) and scoring four or more in their victory. In fairness, the seven underdog team totals would have likely been 2.5 goals, but if you were to play the alternate line of 3.5 goals for the team total, you would have had a juicy plus price. There’s only one game on the NHL slate tonight when the Washington Capitals host the Philadelphia Flyers.
Philadelphia Flyers at Washington Capitals (-140; 6)
7:30 p.m. ET
This is the back end of a home and home between these two Metropolitan Division Rivals. The Capitals won last night in Philadelphia behind a pair of first-period shorthanded goals and handed the Flyers (1-4-1) their fifth consecutive loss. Philadelphia managed eight shots on goal in the final 40 minutes of last night’s game. The Flyers have been outscored 9-1 in their last two games, and in four of their five defeats this season, they have lost by two or more goals.
With Samuel Ersson getting the start in goal on Tuesday, the Flyers will turn to Ivan Fedotov for tonight’s rematch with the Capitals. The Russian netminder has been torched for five goals in each of his two starts this season. Fedotov, who joined the Flyers in the final month of last season, is making just his sixth NHL start. He is searching for his first win and has given up four goals or more in all but one start.
The Washington Capitals have been the opposite of the Flyers. Since losing 5-3 to the Devils in their first game of the season, the Caps (4-1) have reeled off four straight wins. Last night’s victory over the Flyers was the first time the Capitals scored two shorthanded goals in the same game in 18 years.
With Charlie Lindgren getting the start last night for Wahington, I would expect Logan Thompson between the pipes for the Caps, with this being a back-to-back scenario. Thompson is coming off an impressive win over his former team, the Vegas Golden Knights, stopping 24 of 26 shots for the win.
NHL Predictions: Washington Capitals (-140) – 1 unit
Washington Capitals team total Over 3.5 (+115) – 1 unit
