Washington Capitals at Carolina Hurricanes NHL Picks & Predictions 1/2/2018

Tuesday, January 2, 2018

PNC Arena

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Washington Capitals travel to PNC Arena to play the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday, January 2, 2018.

Washington has a record of 24-13-3 this season and on the road they have a record of 8-8-3-1. They are 1st in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 123 goals and given up 113 goals for a point differential of +10. For the season they have an ATS record of 24-16-0 and an over/under record of 22-18-0. Carolina is 18-13-7 including 10-4-3-1 at home this season. They are 6th in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 106 goals and surrendered 114 for a goal differential of -8. Their record against the spread is 18-20-0 while their over/under record is 17-19-0.

Valuable Washington Capitals Betting Trends

The Washington Capitals are 24-16-0 straight up this year

The Washington Capitals are 22-18-0 against the over/under this season

Important Carolina Hurricanes Betting Trends

The Carolina Hurricanes are 18-20-0 straight up this year

The Carolina Hurricanes are 17-19-0 against the over/under this season

Key Washington Capitals Injuries

No key injuries to report

Key Carolina Hurricanes Injuries

11/13/17 RW Lee Stempniak Hip IR (10/02)

Player Spotlight

Alex Ovechkin has accumulated 41 total points this season for the Capitals. He has 24 goals this year with 179 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 13%. He has a total of 17 assists on the season and averages 19.5 minutes played per game. Nicklas Backstrom averages 19.6 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 11% by scoring 8 goals on 70 shots. He has 23 assists, giving him a total of 31 points on the season. Braden Holtby has 22 wins and 8 losses this season in net for the Capitals. He has 924 shots against him and he's given up 76 goals. He's made 848 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Player Spotlight

Sebastian Aho has scored 29 total points this year for the Hurricanes. He has 11 goals this season with 110 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 10%. He has a total of 18 assists on the season and averages 18.2 minutes played per game. Teuvo Teravainen averages 16.7 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 12% by scoring 9 goals on 77 shots. He has 20 assists, giving him a total of 29 points on the season. Scott Darling has 8 wins and 11 losses this year in goal for the Hurricanes. He has 684 shots against him and he's surrendered 71 goals. He's made 613 saves for a save percentage of 90%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Capitals have 51 total points this season, which ranks them 5th in the NHL. They are 7th in the league in goals scored with 123 while they've given up 113 goals, ranking them 16th overall. They have had 123 power play opportunities and have scored 24 goals on those chances for a percentage of 20%. That is 14th in the NHL. The Capitals have allowed 138 power play opportunities and have given up 27 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 80%, putting them 19th in the league when short-handed. They average 29 shots per game and as a team shoot 10.67% for the season. They allow 32 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 91%. That puts them 13th in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Hurricanes are 16th in the NHL with a total of 43 points this year. They have 19 power play goals on 123 opportunities for a percentage of 15%. That ranks them 28th in the league as a power play unit. They've allowed 94 power play opportunities and have given up 20 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 79%. That is 23rd in the NHL. As a team, the Hurricanes are 21st in the league with 106 goals scored while they've given up 114 goals, which is 12th overall. They average 35 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 8.09%. As a team they give up 29 shots per game and have a save percentage of 90%. That is 23rd in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Washington has a Corsi percentage of 48.1% as they've tried 2,224 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 2,403 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. That ranks them 28th in Corsi percentage. They are 30th in the NHL in Fenwick percentage with 47.2% as they have 1,622 shots while they've given up 1,814 attempts on defense. The Capitals start possessions in the offensive zone 49.8% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 50.2% for the year. That puts them 21st and 13th in the league in zone percentages respectively. They have 1,222 face-off wins as opposed to 1,156 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 51.4%. That is 13th overall in the NHL. On defense Washington has 901 hits and they've blocked 589 attempts from opposing offenses, which is 6th in the league.

Advanced Statistics

The Hurricanes are 1st in the league in starting possessions in the offensive zone, doing so 59% of the time. Their defensive zone percentage is at 41% for the season, which is 31st in the NHL. They have 1,177 face-off wins compared to 1,070 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 52.4%. That is 3rd in the league. On defense Carolina has 734 hits and they have blocked 494 shots from the opposition, which is 29th in the league. Carolina is 1st in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 54.5% as they've attempted 2,475 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 2,067 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage of 53.8% ranks 1st as they have 1,834 attempts while they have given up 1,573 shots on the defensive end.

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

Guy's Pick: Take Carolina

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