The San Jose Sharks (+165) are on the road to face the Washington Capitals (-195) at Capital One Arena on Sunday. The total is 6.5 (O: -110, U: -110)San Jose (16-26-11) is wrapping up an eight-game road trip coming off a 4-1 loss against the Panthers on Thursday.
The Sharks committed only two penalties in the game, holding Florida without a power play goal. Alexander Barabanov scored the lone goal for the Sharks. Kaapo Kahkonen saved an impressive 38 of 40 shots (.950%) in the loss.
Washington (28-20-6) is playing the second of a back-to-back after earning a 2-1 win over the Bruins yesterday. Nicklas Backstrom and Garnet Hathaway each scored once for the Capitals. Darcy Kuemper was impressive in the win, making 27 saves (.964%).
HEAD TO HEAD
The teams split their two meetings last season, the last of which was a 4-1 victory for the Sharks in January. Four players were on the scoresheet for San Jose. Daniel Sprong scored Washington’s only goal. James Reimer got the win, saving 32 of 33 shots (.969%).
FACING OFF
San Jose is averaging 3.04 goals per game for the season, 20th in the NHL, and they are taking on a Capitals team that is allowing 2.80 goals a game (10th).
Meanwhile, Washington has found the net 3.09 times a game on average, 18th in the league, and the Sharks are allowing opponents to score 3.74 goals per game (29th).
The Capitals’ 20.61% power play percentage ranks 19th in the league, while the Sharks are 20th with a conversion rate of 20.00%. In terms of penalty killing, San Jose has the league’s sixth-ranked PK% at 82.47%, while Washington is seventh at 81.94%.
TOP PERFORMERS:
With 70 points this season, sixth-most in the NHL, Erik Karlsson is the top skater for the Sharks. He is among the league leaders with 53 assists (2nd) and has added 17 goals of his own. In the net, Reimer (8-14-6) is San Jose’s top goaltender by goals against average. He has a 3.31 GAA and a .895% save percentage.
Alex Ovechkin leads the Capitals in scoring with 54 points. He has 32 goals (8th) and 22 assists. Kuemper (15-14-4) has the best goals against average for Washington at 2.62. He has a save percentage of .915%.
HOME AND AWAY
San Jose is 11-14-4 away from SAP Center at San Jose this season. Washington is 14-8-3 at Capital One Arena this season. Meanwhile, the Capitals are 1-5 without a day off and 0-2 playing with a rest disadvantage. The Sharks are 2-3 with a rest advantage.
SportsTips’ NHL Pick:
Washington Capitals -1.5 (+120)
Want up to a $1K risk free bet for this pick?
Claim with 
today!
If you need more news, information and predictions, head over to our NHL hub page for all your hockey needs!
*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
