The Carolina Hurricanes (5-2-1) welcome the Washington Capitals (5-4-0) at PNC Arena on Monday. Washington is coming off a 3-0 win over the Predators on Saturday. The Capitals committed five penalties in the game, though they held Nashville without a power play goal. Alex Ovechkin, Aliaksei Protas, and Beck Malenstyn each scored once for the Capitals.
Darcy Kuemper had a great performance with 34 saves to record his first shutout of the season. Carolina beat the Flyers 4-3 (OT) on Saturday. Four players found the net for the Hurricanes. Jordan Staal and Martin Necas both scored and provided an assist to lead the team in scoring. Antti Raanta only stopped 26 of 29 shots (.896%).
HEAD TO HEAD
The Capitals won three of the four games between the teams last season, although the Hurricanes were 6-1 victors in their final meeting in March. Necas led Carolina with three points (2G 1A). Tom Wilson scored Washington’s only goal. Frederik Andersen got the win, saving 25 of 26 shots (.961%).
FACING OFF
Washington is averaging 3.11 goals per game so far this season, 17th in the NHL, and they are taking on a Hurricanes team that is allowing 2.88 goals a game (9th). Meanwhile, Carolina has found the net 3.25 times a game on average, 13th in the league, and the Capitals are allowing opponents to score 2.89 goals per game (11th). Carolina averages more shots/game (36.4) than most teams in the league, ranking fifth, though the team’s 8.9% shooting percentage is 24th.
With an average of 28.9 attempts, Washington ranks 25th.The Capitals’ 20.00% power play percentage ranks 18th in the league, while the Hurricanes are 23rd with a conversion rate of 17.24%. In terms of defending power plays, Washington has the league’s 12th-ranked PK% at 81.48%, while Carolina is 17th at 80.00%.
TOP PERFORMERS:
With seven points this season, Ovechkin is the top skater for the Capitals. He has four goals and three assists in nine games. In the net, Kuemper (4-3-0) is Washington’s top goaltender. He has a 2.48 GAA and a .919% save percentage.Necas leads the Hurricanes in scoring with 11 points.
He has five goals and six assists. Raanta (2-0-1) has the best goals against average for Carolina at 2.23. He has a save percentage of .913%. Andersen (3-2-0) has played the most games in net for the Hurricanes this season. He has a 2.82 GAA and a .896% save percentage.
HOME AND AWAY
Washington is 2-3-0 away from Capital One Arena this season. Carolina is 1-1-0 at PNC Arena this season.
SportsTips’ NHL Pick:
Carolina Hurricanes (-185)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
