Carolina Hurricanes at Washington Capitals NHL Picks & Predictions 12/27/2018

Thursday, December 27, 2018

Capital One Arena

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Carolina Hurricanes travel to Capital One Arena to play the Washington Capitals on Thursday, December 27, 2018. The opening line for this game has the Hurricanes at +160 and the Capitals at -195.

Carolina has a record of 15-15-5 this season. They are 6th in the Metropolitan Division. They have scored 90 goals and given up 103 goals for a point differential of -13. For the season they have an ATS record of 14-20-0 and an over/under record of 11-23-0. Washington has a record of 22-10-3 this year. They are 1st in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 129 goals and surrendered 103 for a goal differential of +26. Their record against the spread is 22-13-0 while their over/under record is 19-14-0.

Valuable Carolina Hurricanes Betting Trends

The Carolina Hurricanes are 14-20-0 straight up this year

The Carolina Hurricanes are 11-23-0 against the over/under this season

Important Washington Capitals Betting Trends

The Washington Capitals are 22-13-0 straight up this year

The Washington Capitals are 19-14-0 against the over/under this season

Key Carolina Hurricanes Injuries

12/23/18 D Haydn Fleury Concussion is questionable Thursday vs Washington
12/23/18 C Jordan Staal Upper Body is questionable Thursday vs Washington

Key Washington Capitals Injuries

12/14/18 D Christian Djoos Lower Body is out indefinitely
11/09/18 D Brooks Orpik Lower Body is out indefinitely

Player Spotlight

Petr Mrazek has 6 wins and 7 losses this season in net for the Hurricanes. He has 381 shots against him and he's given up 39 goals. He's made 342 saves for a save percentage of 90%. Sebastian Aho has accumulated 38 total points this season for the Hurricanes. He has 14 goals this year with 107 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 13%. He has a total of 24 assists on the season and averages 19.5 minutes played per game. Teuvo Teravainen averages 17.6 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 10% by scoring 8 goals on 77 shots. He has 21 assists, giving him a total of 29 points on the season.

Player Spotlight

Nicklas Backstrom has scored 41 total points this year for the Capitals. He has 10 goals this season with 66 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 15%. He has a total of 31 assists on the season and averages 20.5 minutes played per game. Braden Holtby has 14 wins and 8 losses this year in goal for the Capitals. He has 775 shots against him and he's surrendered 67 goals. He's made 708 saves for a save percentage of 91%. Alex Ovechkin averages 21.2 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 21% by scoring 29 goals on 141 shots. He has 15 assists, giving him a total of 44 points on the season.

Useful Team Statistics

The Hurricanes have allowed 108 power play opportunities and have given up 21 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 81% this year. That is 14th in the NHL. They average 38 shots per game and as a team shoot 6.85% for the season. They allow 28 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 90%, which is ranked 25th in the league. The Hurricanes have 35 total points this season, ranking 24th in the NHL in offense. They are 30th in the league with 90 goals while they've given up 103 goals, which is 23rd overall. They have had 121 power play opportunities and scored 19 goals on those chances for a percentage of 16%. That is 24th in the NHL.

Useful Team Statistics

As a team, the Capitals are 3rd with 129 goals scored while they are 22nd in the NHL with 103 goals allowed this year. They average 30 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 12.38%. They give up 32 shots per game and have a save percentage of 91%, putting them in 11th place in the league. The Capitals have a total of 47 points this year, which is 5th in the NHL. They have 26 power play goals on 111 opportunities for a percentage of 23%. That ranks their power play unit 8th. They've allowed 127 power play opportunities and have given up 30 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 76%, which is 26th overall.

Advanced Statistics

Carolina is 1st in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 57.5%, as they've attempted 2,472 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 1,828 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is 57.2% as they have 1,861 attempts while they have given up 1,391 shots on the defensive end. That ranks them 1st in the league. The Hurricanes start possessions in the offensive zone 58.1% of the time, which is 1st in the league, while their defensive zone percentage is at 41.9% for the season. That is 31st overall in the NHL. They have 1,110 face-off wins compared to 1,058 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 51.2%. That ranks them 9th in the league. On defense Carolina has 972 hits and they have blocked 437 shots from the opposition, putting them 31st overall.

Advanced Statistics

The Capitals are 18th in the league in starting possessions in the offensive zone, doing so 49.4% of the time. Their defensive zone percentage is at 50.6% for the season, which is 14th in the NHL. They have 985 face-off wins compared to 1,078 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 47.7%. That is 27th in the league. On defense Washington has 766 hits and they have blocked 540 shots from the opposition, which is 7th in the league. Washington is 22nd in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 48.8% as they've attempted 2,001 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 2,097 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage of 49.1% ranks 20th as they have 1,500 attempts while they have given up 1,557 shots on the defensive end.

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

Guy's Pick: Take Washington -195

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