Washington Capitals at St. Louis Blues NHL Picks & Predictions 4/2/2018

Monday, April 2, 2018

Scottrade Center

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Washington Capitals travel to Scottrade Center to play the St. Louis Blues on Monday, April 2, 2018. The opening line for this game has the Capitals at +127 and the Blues at -140.

Washington has a record of 46-25-7 this season and on the road they have a record of 19-15-5-1. They are 1st in the Metropolitan Division. They've scored 244 goals and given up 229 goals for a point differential of +15. For the season they have an ATS record of 46-32-0 and an over/under record of 43-33-0. St. Louis is 43-29-6 including 24-15-0-0 at home this season. They are 4th in the Central Division. They've scored 215 goals and surrendered 208 for a goal differential of +7. Their record against the spread is 43-35-0 while their over/under record is 31-46-0.

Valuable Washington Capitals Betting Trends

The Washington Capitals are 46-32-0 straight up this year

The Washington Capitals are 43-33-0 against the over/under this season

Important St. Louis Blues Betting Trends

The St. Louis Blues are 43-35-0 straight up this year

The St. Louis Blues are 31-46-0 against the over/under this season

Key Washington Capitals Injuries

03/31/18 RW T.J. Oshie Upper Body injured last game, is "?" Sunday vs Pittsburgh

Key St. Louis Blues Injuries

09/27/17 C Robby Fabbri ACL IR (10/01)
03/31/18 LW Nikita Soshnikov Upper Body is "?" Monday vs Washington
03/23/18 D Carl Gunnarsson ACL is out for season
03/05/18 D Jay Bouwmeester Hip is out for season

Player Spotlight

Alex Ovechkin has accumulated 83 total points this season for the Capitals. He has 45 goals this year with 334 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 14%. He has a total of 38 assists on the season and averages 20.1 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 12% by scoring 19 goals on 156 shots. He has 46 assists, giving him a total of 65 points on the season. Braden Holtby has 32 wins and 16 losses this season in net for the Capitals. He has 1,586 shots against him and he's given up 148 goals. He's made 1,438 saves for a save percentage of 91%.

Player Spotlight

Vladimir Tarasenko has scored 63 total points this year for the Blues. He has 31 goals this season with 293 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 11%. He has a total of 32 assists on the season and averages 19.3 minutes played per game. Brayden Schenn averages 19.7 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 13% by scoring 26 goals on 197 shots. He has 39 assists, giving him a total of 65 points on the season. Jake Allen has 27 wins and 22 losses this year in goal for the Blues. He has 1,518 shots against him and he's surrendered 142 goals. He's made 1,376 saves for a save percentage of 91%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Capitals have 99 total points this season, which ranks them 7th in the NHL. They are 10th in the league in goals scored with 244 while they've given up 229 goals, ranking them 17th overall. They have had 230 power play opportunities and have scored 52 goals on those chances for a percentage of 23%. That is 7th in the NHL. The Capitals have allowed 257 power play opportunities and have given up 51 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 80%, putting them 17th in the league when short-handed. They average 29 shots per game and as a team shoot 10.83% for the season. They allow 32 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 91%. That puts them 18th in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Blues are 16th in the NHL with a total of 92 points this year. They have 37 power play goals on 237 opportunities for a percentage of 16%. That ranks them 30th in the league as a power play unit. They've allowed 223 power play opportunities and have given up 44 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 80%. That is 16th in the NHL. As a team, the Blues are 24th in the league with 215 goals scored while they've given up 208 goals, which is 27th overall. They average 33 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 8.47%. As a team they give up 30 shots per game and have a save percentage of 91%. That is 15th in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Washington is 31st in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 47.4%, as they've attempted 4,258 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 4,731 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is 47.1% as they have 3,194 attempts while they have given up 3,583 shots on the defensive end. That ranks them 31st in the league. The Capitals start possessions in the offensive zone 49.7% of the time, which is 19th in the league, while their defensive zone percentage is at 50.3% for the season. That is 16th overall in the NHL. They have 2,343 face-off wins compared to 2,297 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 50.5%. That ranks them 14th in the league. On defense Washington has 1,699 hits and they have blocked 1,148 shots from the opposition, putting them 16th overall.

Advanced Statistics

The Blues start possessions in the offensive zone 50.6% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 49.4% for the year. That ranks them 17th and 19th respectively in the NHL. They have 2,345 face-off wins as opposed to 2,302 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 50.5%. That is 13th in the league. On defense St. Louis has 1,801 hits and they've blocked 1,215 attempts from opposing offenses, ranking them 8th in blocked shots. St. Louis is ranked 13th in Corsi percentage with 51.3% as they've tried 4,590 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 4,350 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. Their Fenwick percentage is 3rd in the NHL at 52.6%, as they have 3,477 shots while they've given up 3,135 attempts on defense.

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

Josh's Pick: Take St. Louis -140

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