Tampa Bay Lightning vs Washington Capitals Prediction, 10/16/2021 NHL Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Tampa Bay Lightning vs Washington Capitals

Date: Saturday, October 16, 2021

Location: Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.

TV: NBC Sports Washington

Odds/Point Spread: Lightning (-105) Capitals (-105)

Andrei Vasilevskiy and the Tampa Bay Lightning go to Capital One Arena on Saturday where they'll take on the Washington Capitals. The Capitals open this game at -105 while the Lightning are coming in at -105. The over/under is set at 6.5.

The Lightning were on the right side of the scoreboard with a 7-6 win over the Red Wings the last time they stepped on the ice. The Lightning had a good offensive performance and it was apparent in the win. For the game, they converted 7 out of the 48 shots they attempted. Moreover, they had 7 power play tries and were able to score 3 goals. Tampa Bay tallied 26 mins in the box in this contest. The Corsi for the Lightning came in at 48 and the Corsi against when this game finished was 29 which means they had a Corsi percentage of 62.3%. Their Fenwick was 41 and the Fenwick against was 23, meaning they had a Fenwick rate of 64.1%. They had a tally of 24 face-off wins when at even strength and lost on 19 opportunities to control the puck. When starting in the offensive zone they were rated at 57.9% and they had a PDO at even strength of 85.8 for this one.

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When it comes to their scoring capabilities, the Tampa Bay Lightning racked up 180 goals (8th in the NHL) in the prior season and gave up 145. For the prior season, they earned 75 points and their points percentage was .670. Tampa Bay had 180 power play chances and added 40 goals during those chances, giving them a percentage of 22.22%. When playing at even strength, the Lightning allowed the opponent to score 116 goals while scoring 140. Tampa Bay tried 1,692 shots and were the owners of a shooting percentage of 10.6%. The Lightning had 1,583 shots taken against them and held a save percentage of .908. Tampa Bay Lightning opponents had 183 power play opportunities (2nd in pro hockey) and had a total of 29 goals in those chances.

The player protecting the goal in this game is Andrei Vasilevskiy. Vasilevskiy has played in 304 games throughout his NHL career. He has accumulated an overall record of 191-84-19 and he has gotten the start in 294 games. Opponents have been able to score 745 goals against Vasilevskiy in his pro career and his goals against average is 2.52. Vasilevskiy has seen 9,229 shots against him and has recorded 8,484 total saves. His save percentage sits at .919 for his 17,749 minutes guarding the cage. In his career, Vasilevskiy has 164 quality starts and his percentage for quality starts is .558.

In their last contest, Washington went up against the Rangers in a game where the Capitals got the victory by a final of 5-1. They had 6 opportunities on the power play in this outing and scored 3 goals out of those attempts. The Capitals scored 5 goals out of the 27 shots on goal they tried. Their PDO was 106 and they finished the game with an oZS percentage of 56.6%. Washington earned a 49.3% Corsi rating. This Corsi percentage speaks to the kind of game that Washington played and they showed out in this one. Their Fenwick rate was 54.0% with a Fenwick of 27 and the Rangers having accrued a 23 Fenwick at even strength.

On the year, the Washington Capitals accumulated 188 goals, 77 points, as well as a points percentage of .688. They allowed 161 goals to be scored by way of 135 goals at even strength and 26 goals while they were shorthanded. The Capitals earned 150 goals at even strength and 38 goals (6th in hockey) while on the power play. They recorded 153 power play opportunities and they have accumulated a power play rate of 24.84%. Washington attempted 1,647 shots (18th in the NHL) and earned a shooting percentage of 11.41%, while allowing the other team 1,612 shots. They accumulated a penalty kill percentage of 83.95% on the other team's 162 power play opportunities, and their save percentage came in at 90.0%.

Across the ice you are likely to see Vitek Vanecek in net. Vanecek has earned a lifetime mark of 22-10-4 and has played in 38 games. Vanecek's rate of quality starts sits at 51.4% and he has accumulated 19 quality starts in his pro career. He has recorded 959 saves out of the 1,055 shots attempted against him, giving him a save % of .909. His opposition is averaging 2.65 goals per game and he has conceded 96 goals altogether. He has been a starter 37 games and has accumulated 2,175 minutes.

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

Tony's Pick: Take Tampa Bay (-105)

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