Columbus Blue Jackets at Washington Capitals NHL Picks & Predictions 12/2/2017

Saturday, December 2, 2017

Capital One Arena

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Columbus Blue Jackets travel to Capital One Arena to play the Washington Capitals on Saturday, December 2, 2017. The opening line for this game has the Blue Jackets at -140 and the Capitals at +120.

Columbus has a record of 16-8-1 this season and on the road they have a record of 7-4-1. They are 1st in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 72 goals and given up 60 goals for a point differential of +12. For the season they have an ATS record of 16-9-0 and an over/under record of 10-15-0. Washington has a record of 14-10-1 including 8-5-0 at home this season. They are 5th in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 76 goals and surrendered 80 for a goal differential of -4. Their record against the spread is 14-11-0 while their over/under record is 13-12-0.

Valuable Columbus Blue Jackets Betting Trends

The Columbus Blue Jackets are 16-9-0 straight up this year

The Columbus Blue Jackets are 10-15-0 against the over/under this season

Important Washington Capitals Betting Trends

The Washington Capitals are 14-11-0 straight up this year

The Washington Capitals are 13-12-0 against the over/under this season

Key Columbus Blue Jackets Injuries

11/30/17 D Ryan Murray Upper Body is "?" Friday vs Anaheim
11/06/17 LW Matt Calvert Upper Body IR (11/04)

Key Washington Capitals Injuries

10/24/17 LW Andre Burakovsky Upper Body IR (10/21)

Player Spotlight

Sergei Bobrovsky has 14 wins and 5 losses this season in net for the Blue Jackets. He has 601 shots against him and he's given up 39 goals. He's made 562 saves for a save percentage of 94%. Zach Werenski has accumulated 14 total points this season for the Blue Jackets. He has 7 goals this year with 65 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 11%. He has a total of 7 assists on the season and averages 22.6 minutes played per game. Seth Jones averages 24.2 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 4% by scoring 3 goals on 74 shots. He has 9 assists, giving him a total of 12 points on the season.

Player Spotlight

Nicklas Backstrom has scored 19 total points this year for the Capitals. He has 3 goals this season with 44 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 7%. He has a total of 16 assists on the season and averages 19.5 minutes played per game. Braden Holtby has 13 wins and 5 losses this year in goal for the Capitals. He has 568 shots against him and he's surrendered 45 goals. He's made 523 saves for a save percentage of 92%. Alex Ovechkin averages 18.9 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 15% by scoring 18 goals on 117 shots. He has 7 assists, giving him a total of 25 points on the season.

Useful Team Statistics

The Blue Jackets have allowed 62 power play opportunities and have given up 10 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 84% this year. That is 6th in the NHL. They average 35 shots per game and as a team shoot 8.23% for the season. They allow 30 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 92%, which is ranked 4th in the league. The Blue Jackets has 33 total points this season, ranking 4th in the NHL in offense. They are 15th in the league with 72 goals while they've given up 60 goals, which is 29th overall. They have had 68 power play opportunities and scored 6 goals on those chances for a percentage of 9%. That is 31st in the NHL.

Useful Team Statistics

As a team, the Capitals are 13th with 74 goals scored while they are 14th in the NHL with 75 goals allowed this year. They average 29 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 10.15%. They give up 32 shots per game and have a save percentage of 91%, putting them in 14th place in the league. The Capitals have a total of 29 points this year, which is 12th in the NHL. They have 17 power play goals on 82 opportunities for a percentage of 21%. That ranks their power play unit 13th. They've allowed 97 power play opportunities and have given up 22 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 77%, which is 24th overall.

Advanced Statistics

Columbus has a Corsi percentage of 52.1% as they've tried 1,513 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 1,392 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. That ranks them 6th in Corsi percentage. They are 2nd in the NHL in Fenwick percentage with 53.5% as they have 1,171 shots while they've given up 1,019 attempts on defense. The Blue Jackets start possessions in the offensive zone 51.9% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 48.1% for the year. That puts them 12th and 20th in the league in zone percentages respectively. They have 676 face-off wins as opposed to 788 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 46.2%. That is 29th overall in the NHL. On defense Columbus has 538 hits and they've blocked 373 attempts from opposing offenses, which is 9th in the league.

Advanced Statistics

The Capitals start possessions in the offensive zone 49.3% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 50.7% for the year. That ranks them 21st and 11th respectively in the NHL. They have 792 face-off wins as opposed to 741 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 51.7%. That is 9th in the league. On defense Washington has 557 hits and they've blocked 358 attempts from opposing offenses, ranking them 15th in blocked shots. Washington is ranked 28th in Corsi percentage with 47.4% as they've tried 1,347 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 1,493 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. Their Fenwick percentage is 29th in the NHL at 46.7%, as they have 995 shots while they've given up 1,135 attempts on defense.

Who will win tonight's Blue Jackets/Capitals NHL game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take Washington +120

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