PNC Arena is the site for Game 6 in the first-round matchup between the Washington Capitals and the Carolina Hurricanes. Washington continued the trend of the home team winning in this series by picking up a 6-0 win on Saturday at Capital One Arena and, in doing so, secured a 3-2 series lead. Despite the dominant triumph in Game 5, the Caps are a -105 underdog with the Hurricanes coming back at -115 and the total Sportsbook at 5.5 goals.
Capitals vs Hurricanes Game Center
Standout Stats
- Through the first five games of this series, neither team has won back-to-back contests, nor has either squad earned a road victory. Carolina outscored Washington 7-1 in Games 3 and 4 at PNC Arena.
- The Hurricanes have done a good job limiting the offensive opportunities for the Capitals, holding them to just 128 shots through five games, the third-fewest total shots in the playoffs. The two teams below them were done in four games.
- The team that has scored first in this series is a perfect 5-0.
- Washington has had the big advantage on the power play as it is clicking at 31.6 percent (6-for-19), while Carolina has had more opportunities, but has only capitalized on 15 percent of its 20 pp chances.
- Hurricanes netminder Petr Mrazek has made some flashy saves but overall his play hasn’t been fantastic as he holds a .890 save percentage and a 2.81 goals-against average. Meanwhile, Caps goalie Braden Holtby has been better, sporting a 2.40 GAA and a .923 save percentage.
- Washington’s Nicklas Backstrom and Alex Ovechkin have combined for eight goals and 15 points this series.
- Despite winning both games on home ice in Games 3 and 4, it was a completely different look over the two contests for Carolina. In the first match, the Hurricanes came out flying, outhitting the Caps 52-34 and outshooting them 45-18 en route to a 5-0 victory. In Game 4, though, Washington outshot Carolina 31-24 and the hits were 34-33 for the Canes in a narrow 2-1 win.
My Best Bet for Washington vs Carolina
Washington Moneyline
I think Mrazek has been just hanging on in this series and I expect Washington to get on him early and often and if he’s not dialed in, it could be a long game. I look at that Game 4 and how tight the contest was – it seemed that the Capitals had the right game plan on the road but couldn’t pull off the win.
