Washington Capitals vs Vancouver Canucks Preview
Planning on watching today’s Canucks and Capitals game? Catch the action at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC, as the Capitals hosts this showdown at 1:30 ET on ESPN+.
The Canucks are favored by -1.5 goals in this non-conference contest against the Capitals. The game’s over/under currently sits at 6 goals. Check out BetCoco for Washington Capitals – Vancouver Canucks odds
Washington Capitals vs Vancouver Canucks Head-to-Head and Key Stats
When looking back over the last three times these two teams have played, the Capitals have the leg up at 3-0. The Capitals also had the edge vs. the puck line in these games, at 3-0. These games averaged a combined total of 7 goals per game leading to an over/under record of 2-1.
- In their last three games away from home, the Canucks have a straight up record of 1-2 while going 1-2 vs the spread. The team’s offense averaged 2 goals per game in these contests.
- When looking at their past ten home matchups, Washington has an puck line record of 5-5 while averaging 2 per game. The team went 4-6 overall in these games.
- Going back to their last ten games as the underdog, the Capitals have a straight up record of 3-7. But, their mark vs the puck line was just 5-5.
- As the betting favorite, the Canucks have an puck line mark of just 0-3 in their last three games. Vancouver posted a straight up mark of 1-2 in these matchups.
Washington Capitals vs Vancouver Canucks Prediction
As the first-place team in the Western Conference, the Vancouver Canucks have a record of 34-12-6 and have been favored in 31 of their 52 games this season. Over their last ten games, Vancouver has gone 6-4, and they enter this game having lost two of their last three games.
On the road this season, the Canucks have gone 16-8-4, and in games against other Western Conference teams, Vancouver has gone 18-9. Against teams in the Pacific Division, the Canucks hold a record of 9-4.
When looking at their offense, the Canucks have an average of 3.7 goals per game this season, positioning themselves 2nd in the NHL. In terms of shots on goal per game, they are ranked 26th in the league. Looking at how the Canucks’ offense is performing during power plays, they are 6th in power play goals and 17th in shorthanded goals.
Heading into this matchup vs. Washington, goalie Thatcher Demko has started 37 games in this season. His current record is 27-9, and his save percentage stands at 0.971%.
At home this year, the Capitals are 13-8-4 and 11-2-2 when favored. Against the Eastern Conference, Washington is 13-15, which has them in 12th place. Overall, the Capitals are 23-20-7 and have 53 points, which has them in 7th place in the Metropolitan Division.
Over their last ten games, the Capitals are 3-7, and they have gone 1-4 in their last five games. As the underdog, Washington has gone 12-18-5 this season.
For their offensive performance, the Capitals come in averaging 2.4 goals per game this season, which is 30th in the NHL. In the category of shots on goal per game, they are 29th in the league. Washington’s offense comes into the game ranked 31st in power play goals. And in terms of shorthanded goals, they are 32nd in the NHL.
Goalie Darcy Kuemper gets the start and has made 24 starts this season. His record at this point is 11-12, and his save percentage is 0.721%.
In spite of being 1.5 goal underdogs, we anticipate the Capitals winning this one 4-2.
Washington Capitals vs Vancouver Canucks Betting Tips
- We like the Capitals on the moneyline (+134)
- The Capitals are also our pick on the spread at +1.5
- Our NHL model projects 6 goals, and we suggest taking the under
Washington Capitals Injury Report
- Max Pacioretty – Lower Body – Questionable
- Evgeny Kuznetsov – Personal – Out
- Sonny Milano – Upper Body – Out
- Trevor van Riemsdyk – Illness – Questionable
- Nicklas Backstrom – Hip – Out
Vancouver Canucks Injury Report
- Nikita Zadorov – Suspension – Out
- Guillaume Brisebois – Upper Body – Out
- Tucker Poolman – Head – Out
- Carson Soucy – Hand – Out
