Washington Capitals vs Pittsburgh Penguins Predictions, NHL Picks 3/7/2020

Game: Washington Capitals vs Pittsburgh Penguins

Date: Saturday, March 7, 2020

Location: PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA

TV: ATTP/NSWA

Odds/Point Spread: Capitals (+118) Penguins (-130)

Total/Over-Under: 6.5

PPG Paints Arena is the site where Tristan Jarry and the Pittsburgh Penguins (39-21-6, 3rd in the Metropolitan Division) will play the Washington Capitals (40-20-7, 1st in the Metropolitan Division) on Saturday. The Penguins open this contest at -130 while the Capitals are coming in at +118. The O/U opens at 6.5. The Capitals cover 57.1% of the time, having gone 36-27 SU. The Penguins cover 57.1% of the time, going 36-27 straight up.

The Washington Capitals head into this game holding a record of 40 wins and 20 losses, which is good for 1st in the Metropolitan Division. So far this season, they have converted a total of 229 goals which ranks 3rd in the Eastern Conference and 3rd in the NHL. Their goal differential is +21, which is good for 7th in the NHL. The Capitals currently have a total of 87 points, which ranks 5th in the NHL and 3rd in the conference. When looking at shots on goal, they currently have a total of 2,143 which ranks 7th in the conference and 13th in the NHL. As a group, Washington currently has a total of 1,551 hits which means they have an average of 23.1 per game. They currently have a total of 733 blocks for this year. In net for Washington is Braden Holtby from Lloydminster, Saskatchewan. He is 30 years old and has played a total of 2,618 minutes in goal for the season. Holtby is conceding an average of 3.16 goals against average which places him at 25th in the East and 53rd in the NHL among goaltenders. During this season, he's surrendered 138 goals. He's earned a save percentage of .896 which places him at 30th in the East.

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The Washington Capitals had a rough game after their 6 - 5 defeat against the New York Rangers in their previous game. The Capitals had a impressive offensive performance in the defeat. For this matchup, they scored on 5 of the 34 shots they put on net. Furthermore, they had 2 power play attempts but weren't able to notch a goal in these power play chances. Washington had a total of 14 penalty mins in this outing. The Corsi for the Capitals sat at 41 and the Corsi against was 48 which gave them a Corsi percentage of 46.1%. Their Fenwick was 36 and the Fenwick against was 37, giving them a rate of 49.3%. They earned 18 face-off wins at even strength and lost 31 of the face-offs. Their offensive zone starts came in at 44.5% and they had a PDO of 107.0 for this one. In discussing stats from the opponent, the New York Rangers put up 39 shots. They had 6 penalty mins and they notched 6 power play attempts.

The Penguins will be looking to get a victory in this matchup and for the campaign they sit with 39 wins and 21 losses. When it comes to goal differential, they are ranked 4th in the conference and 6th in the NHL with +29. They have a total of 212 goals for this season which is good for 8th in the conference. Pittsburgh has a team save % of .907 which has them 12th in the NHL, which means there should be some chances to score. They have a shooting percentage of 10.0% which puts them at 8th in the Eastern Conference. In goal for Pittsburgh is Tristan Jarry who is having a marginal year by giving up 2.31 goals against average and that has him 4th among Eastern Conference goalies and 7th among goalies in the NHL. In the 1,866 mins he has been on the ice, he's given up 72 goals. His save percentage is .924, which puts him at 4th among Eastern Conference goalies and 7th among goalies in the NHL.

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The Pittsburgh Penguins went up against the Buffalo Sabres in a matchup where the Penguins notched a victory by a final of 4 - 2. For this matchup, Pittsburgh earned a 50.6% Corsi rating. They got to that percentage by earning a Corsi of 45 while the opposition earned a Corsi of 44. They had a Fenwick percentage of 54.1% by notching a Fenwick of 40 and the Sabres finishing with a 34 Fenwick. These Corsi stats speak to the kind of game that Pittsburgh played and it tells us that they played really well in this game. They had a PDO of 105.5 and their percentage of oZS was 31.6%. The Penguins notched 4 goals out of the 32 shots on goal they were seeking. They had 3 power play chances in this game and converted 1 out of those tries. On the other side of the ice, the Sabres had 3 power play attempts but didn't put the puck in goal. Pittsburgh conceded 30 shots on goal and the Sabres ended up with 6 penalty minutes.

Who will win tonight's NHL game ATS?

Josh's Pick: Take Washington (+118)

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