The Washington Capitals will be skating without a key player on Thursday night as they play host to the Boston Bruins in Game 4 of their best-of-seven Eastern Conference quarterfinal series.
Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom (illegal cross check) has been suspended for Game 4, and his team is down 2-1 in the series after getting beaten in Game 3 on Monday night at home by a 4-3 score.
Washington battles the Bruins, currently with a 49-29-4 mark. The OVER/UNDER records, important for totals bettors, are 40-37-5 for the Capitals and 46-33-3 for the Bruins.
View Boston vs Washington Odds and Stats.
Betting Line:
Bettors looking to side with the Capitals in this one will find them as +115 underdogs on the NHL money line at Sportsbook. Betting the over under instead? It was hovering near 5 at its open earlier today.
Power Rankings:
It's a hockey betting matchup between the No. 18-rated Capitals and the No. 2-ranked Bruins, according to the latest NHL power poll here at Odds Shark.
How They Match Up:
Offensively, the game matches up Washington's No. 15-ranked offense (2.7 goals per game) against a Bruins defense that ranks No. 5 at 2.5 goals per game allowed. The Capitals Sportsbook has clicked at a 16.7% rate while the Bruins have a 83.5% rate on the penalty kill.
Boston won its last outing, a 4-3 result against the Capitals on April 16. Bettors who backed the Bruins at -117 on the moneyline won on the day, and the total score (7) sent OVER bettors to the payout window.
Boston Bruins Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 7-3
Before playing Ottawa are 6-4
After playing Washington are 4-6
After a win are 6-4
Washington Capitals Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 7-3
Before playing Calgary are 3-7
After playing Boston are 7-3
After a loss are 6-4
A few Bruins at Capitals trends to consider:
Boston is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games on the road
Boston is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 15 of Boston's last 21 games when playing Washington
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Boston's last 13 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 15 of Washington's last 21 games when playing Boston
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Washington's last 6 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Washington's last 6 games when playing at home against Boston
Washington is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Boston
Next up:
Boston home to Washington, Saturday, April 21
