Tampa Bay Looks to Build on Carolina Shutout
With one win in its last six games, Washington isn’t exactly making a strong push for the playoffs.
The Capitals didn’t earn one power-play opportunity in a 2-1 shootout loss to the New York Islanders on Wednesday. The Capitals are 2-5 when playing in the second game in back-to-back games.
Tampa Bay snapped a four-game losing streak with a 4-0 shutout of Metropolitan Division-leading Carolina on Tuesday despite being outshot 31-21.
Tampa Bay trails second-place Toronto by six points in the Atlantic Division standings with seven games left. Washington is five points out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with seven games left as well.
Washington is 17-18-3 on the road this season while Tampa Bay is 25-7-5 at home, so keep that in mind when making NHL picks.
When looking at some of the NHL news, Sonny Milano has missed the last two games and is questionable for the Capitals. Fellow forwards Connor Brown and Carl Hagelin are out.
There are no such injury concerns for the Lightning.
According to the NHL playoff odds, the Lightning (+1400) is tied for eighth in the odds to win the Stanley Cup title. Washington is well back at +25000.
Working Overtime
Not only do the Washington Capitals have to play Tampa Bay after a tough game on Wednesday against the New York Islanders, they needed overtime and then a shootout before losing.
It was the sixth one-goal game and fifth one that required overtime in the month of March. The Capitals are 2-1-3 in those games. Those three lost points might be what keeps Washington out of the playoffs.
Alexander Ovechkin had scored at least one goal in each of the last four games. He was held without a goal or an assist for just the second time in the last 11 games. Washington’s only goal was scored by Conor Sheary as he has points in four straight games after managing no goals and one assist in his previous 19 games.
The Las Vegas odds total has gone over in eight of Washington’s last nine games as well as in five of the last six road games.
Striking Early
Some familiar names stepped up when the three-time defending Eastern Conference champion Tampa Bay Lightning looked to snap a four-game losing streak.
Brayden Point had two goals and an assist, captain Steven Stamkos had a goal and two assists and Alex Killorn, in his 11th season with the Lightning, had the other goal in a 4-0 win over Carolina.
That was more than enough for Andrei Vasilevskiy as he stopped all 31 shots for his third shutout of the season.
Defenseman Mikhail Sergachev had an assist and he is two points shy of joining Victor Hedman as the only defensemen in franchise history with 50 points in a season.
With one assist last night, Mikhail Sergachev is up to 48 on the year, the fourth-highest single season total by a D-man in #Bolts franchise history.
1. Victor Hedman: 65 (2021-22)
2. Victor Hedman: 56 (2016-17)
3. Roman Hamrlik: 49 (1995-96)
4. Mikhail Sergachev: 48 (2022-23) pic.twitter.com/fAoPhd1uVT— Chris Krenn (@Chris_Krenn) March 29, 2023
More of that will be needed by the Tampa Bay stars as the Lightning seem destined to meet Toronto in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
It has been a bit of a bumpy road for Tampa Bay with a five-game losing streak, three-game winning streak and four-game losing streak over the last 18 games.
The NHL betting lines total has gone over in five of the Lightning’s last seven home games.
Capitals vs Lightning Game Injuries
Capitals vs Lightning Head-to-Head
Tampa Bay has won four of the last six games against Washington.
The teams played two in three days in November with each team winning at home. Sonny Milano had two goals and an assist in Washington’s 5-1 victory on Nov. 11 with Mikhai Sergachev recording two goals and two assists in Tampa Bay’s 6-3 win on Nov. 13.
Before those two games, five of the previous seven meetings were decided by one goal.
The home team has won six of the last seven games between the teams.
Capitals vs Lightning Game Information
- Game: Capitals (34-32-7) vs Lightning (43-26-6)
- Location: Amalie Arena, Tampa, FL
- Day/Time: Thursday, March 30, 7 p.m. ET
- Capitals vs Lightning Live stream: NHL.TV
Capitals vs Lightning Betting Lines
Capitals vs Lightning Picks and Prediction
Neither team is playing its best hockey. Washington is 5-5-3 in the month of March with the Lightning 6-7-2.
Washington has been one of the best teams in the NHL on the penalty kill during that stretch, killing 87% of the opposing power plays. Tampa Bay is in the bottom half of the NHL on both the power play and penalty kill in March.
Washington is in jeopardy of missing the playoffs for the first time since the 2013-14 season.
There were 84 hits and 42 penalty minutes the last time these teams played with Tampa Bay scoring twice on four man-advantage opportunities in a 6-3 win.
Washington has covered in 20 of its 38 road games. Tampa Bay is 20-17 against the spread on home ice.
The Lightning is 37-21-6 when listed by the sportsbook as the favorite. Washington is 13-26-5 as the underdog.
The Washington Capitals are listed at +175 in our Las Vegas hockey odds. This means that if you wager $100 on the Capitals, you have a chance to win $175. Tampa Bay is -210, offering a chance to win $48 on a $100 wager.
The implied probability attached to the betting lines gives the Washington Capitals a 36.36% chance to win, with the Tampa Bay Lightning at 67.74%
Capitals vs Lightning Trends
Capitals vs Lightning Edge
Capitals vs Lightning Results
Capitals vs Lightning Game Summary
