Washington Primed to Extend its Broadway Hot Streak

Everything is working for the Washington Capitals as they bring the league’s best record into Wednesday’s encounter with the host New York Rangers. The Capitals come in having won back-to-back games to extend their lead to five points over the next-closest team, and are in good position to extend that run against a Rangers team that has dropped consecutive outings.

Sportsbook Odds Analysis

Washington opened at -160, marking its biggest road betting advantage of the season (and with good reason, given that the Capitals are 10-1-1 away from Capital One Arena in 2019-20). The total opened at 6.5, the fourth consecutive time the Metropolitan Division rivals have seen that number.

Washington News & Notes

The Capitals have been in complete control of the recent head-to-head series between the teams, having won seven straight and 10 of the past 11. But it’s worth noting that the Rangers have been mostly competitive in recent years; five of their last eight tilts have gone to extra time, with Washington winning four of those games.

As you might expect, Alex Ovechkin has been a significant thorn in the Rangers’ side over the years – and should draw plenty of interest in the player prop department. Ovechkin has 33 goals in 57 career meetings with the Broadway Blueshirts and has goals in five of the past 10 encounters after going 16 regular-season meetings without scoring.

New York News & Notes

It’s fair to assume that the Rangers will pay special attention to Ovechkin – but at this point in the season, they haven’t really been able to stop anyone. New York enters Wednesday having allowed the second-most goals per game in the league (3.61) and has been torched for 13 goals in back-to-back losses to the Tampa Bay Lightning and Florida Panthers.

But for all the struggles the Rangers have had in their zone, they’ve actually fared well on offense, ranking ninth in the NHL as of Tuesday at 3.33 goals per game. Artemi Panarin paces the offense in goals (nine) and points (23) while five other players have scored five or more goals – including defenseman Tony DeAngelo, whose six goals are already a career high.

Betting pick: Capitals Moneyline and OVER

Both teams can score – but one does it a little better than the other. We like the Capitals to prevail here, but this game should produce enough offense to make the OVER a nice addition to your bet.