Washington Capitals at Dallas Stars NHL Picks & Predictions 1/4/2019

Friday, January 4, 2019

American Airlines Center

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Washington Capitals head to American Airlines Center to take on the Dallas Stars on Friday, January 4, 2019. The opening line for this contest has the Capitals at -115 and the Stars at -110.

Washington has a record of 24-11-3 this year. They are 1st in the Metropolitan Division. They've tallied 138 goals and surrendered 112 goals for a point differential of +26. For the year they have an ATS mark of 24-14-0 and an over/under record of 20-16-0. Dallas has a record of 21-16-4 this season. They are 3rd in the Central Division. They have scored 113 goals and given up 110 for a goal differential of +3. Their record against the spread is 20-20-0 while their over/under mark is 14-22-0.

Valuable Washington Capitals Betting Trends

The Washington Capitals are 24-14-0 straight up this year

The Washington Capitals are 20-16-0 against the over/under this season

Important Dallas Stars Betting Trends

The Dallas Stars are 20-20-0 straight up this year

The Dallas Stars are 14-22-0 against the over/under this season

Key Washington Capitals Injuries

12/14/18 D Christian Djoos Lower Body is out indefinitely
01/01/19 D Matt Niskanen Head is questionable Thursday vs St. Louis

Key Dallas Stars Injuries

12/31/18 C Jason Dickinson Back is out indefinitely
12/31/18 C Martin Hanzal Back is out indefinitely
11/19/18 D Marc Methot Lower Body IR (11/19)
10/03/18 D Stephen Johns Head IR (10/03)
01/03/19 D Julius Honka Upper Body left last game, is questionable Friday vs Washington
01/02/19 LW Jamie Benn Undisclosed left last game, is questionable Friday vs Washington

Player Spotlight

Alex Ovechkin has scored 45 total points this year for the Capitals. He has 29 goals this season with 151 shots on net, giving him a shooting percentage of 19%. He has a total of 16 assists on the year and averages 21.2 minutes played per contest. Nicklas Backstrom averages 20.4 minutes of ice time per game this season. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 13% by tallying 10 goals on 76 attempts. He has 34 assists, giving him a total of 44 points on the year. Braden Holtby has 15 wins and 9 losses this season in goal for the Capitals. He has 838 shots against him and he's surrendered 74 goals. He's made 764 stops for a save percentage of 91%.

Player Spotlight

Tyler Seguin has 36 total points this season for the Stars. He has 13 goals this year with 163 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 8%. He has a total of 23 assists on the year and averages 20.9 minutes played per contest. Jamie Benn averages 18.4 minutes of ice time per contest. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 17% by scoring 17 goals on 101 attempts. He has 15 assists, giving him a total of 32 points on the year. Ben Bishop has 14 wins and 9 losses this season in net for the Stars. He has 770 shots against him and he's given up 59 goals. He's made 711 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Capitals have 51 total points this year, which is 6th in the NHL. They've scored 138 goals while giving up 112 scores, which has them ranked 6th and 23rd respectively. They have had 116 power play chances and scored 27 goals on those opportunities for a percentage of 23%. That is 9th in the league. The Capitals have given up 135 power play opportunities and surrendered 31 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 77%, ranking them 24th when short-handed. They average 30 shots per contest and as a team shoot 12.28% for the year. They allow 32 shot attempts to their opposition per game and have a team save percentage of 91%, which is 11th in the league.

Useful Team Statistics

The Stars are 16th in the league with a total of 46 points this season. They have 22 power play goals on 105 chances for a percentage of 21%. That is 14th in the NHL. They've given up 126 power play opportunities and surrendered 22 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 83%, ranking 9th overall. As a team, the Stars are 24th with a total of 113 goals scored while they've given up 110 goals this season, ranking 25th in goals against. They average 30 shots per game and have a team shooting percentage of 9.08%. As a unit they give up 32 shots per contest and have a save percentage of 92%, putting them 4th overall in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Washington is 22nd in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 48.8%, as they've attempted 2,176 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 2,280 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is 49% as they have 1,629 attempts while they have given up 1,695 shots on the defensive end. That ranks them 20th in the league. The Capitals start possessions in the offensive zone 50% of the time, which is 18th in the league, while their defensive zone percentage is at 50% for the season. That is 14th overall in the NHL. They have 1,066 face-off wins compared to 1,171 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 47.7%. That ranks them 28th in the league. On defense Washington has 847 hits and they have blocked 585 shots from the opposition, putting them 10th overall.

Advanced Statistics

The Stars are 31st in the league in starting possessions in the offensive zone, doing so 46.4% of the time. Their defensive zone percentage is at 53.6% for the season, which is 1st in the NHL. They have 1,276 face-off wins compared to 1,185 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 51.8%. That is 7th in the league. On defense Dallas has 922 hits and they have blocked 646 shots from the opposition, which is 2nd in the league. Dallas is 27th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 47% as they've attempted 2,181 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 2,463 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage of 47.5% ranks 26th as they have 1,645 attempts while they have given up 1,817 shots on the defensive end.

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

Guy's Pick: Take Washington -115

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here

Read more articles by Guy Bruhn