Washington Capitals vs Buffalo Sabres Prediction, 3/15/2021 NHL Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Washington Capitals vs Buffalo Sabres

Date: Monday, March 15, 2021

Location: KeyBank Center in Buffalo, NY

TV: MSG-B

Odds/Point Spread: Capitals (-213) Sabres (+191)

Ilya Samsonov and the Washington Capitals (17-6-4) are headed to KeyBank Center on Monday where they'll take on the Buffalo Sabres (6-16-4). The odds on this matchup have the Capitals priced at -213 and the Sabres are at +191. The O/U is set at 6.5.

The Capitals went home feeling good about their game by earning a 5-4 victory against the Flyers in their last contest. Their offensive zone starts were rated at 29.9% and they had a PDO of 110.3 for this matchup. They accumulated 18 face-off wins at even strength and lost on 23 opportunities to gain puck control. Their Fenwick came in at 28 and the Fenwick against finished at 41, giving them a Fenwick rate of 40.6%. The Corsi for the Capitals was 37 and the Corsi against when the final whistle blew was 59 meaning they had a Corsi rate of 38.5%. Washington recorded 4 penalty minutes in this matchup. Furthermore, they had 2 opportunities with more players on the ice and netted 1 goal. The Capitals had a impressive offensive outing in the win. For the game, they tallied a score on 5 out of the 23 shots they put on goal.

Concerning their scoring capabilities, the Washington Capitals have racked up 92 goals (5th in pro hockey) on the campaign and have allowed 85. For the season, they have racked up 38 points and their points percentage comes in at .704. Washington has tallied 67 power play chances and they have added 18 goals out of those attempts, garnering them a rate of 26.87%. When playing at even strength, the Capitals have surrendered 69 goals while getting 74 of their own. Washington has attempted 768 shots and has a shot percentage of 12.0%. The Capitals have had 808 shots taken against them and are the owners of a save percentage of .895. Washington Capitals opponents have earned 86 power play opportunities (14th in professional hockey) and have come away with 16 goals in those attempts.

The player in the crease for this game is Ilya Samsonov. Over the course of his career, Samsonov has accounted for 15 quality starts and his percentage for quality starts is .536. His save percentage sits at .911 in his 1,800 minutes guarding the cage. Samsonov has had 872 shots taken against him and has gathered 794 total saves. Opponents have tallied 78 goals versus Samsonov in his pro hockey career and his goals against rate is 2.60. He has earned an overall mark of 21-6-3 and he was named the starter in 28 games. Samsonov has been involved in 33 matchups over the course of his pro hockey career.

In their last game, Buffalo played the Penguins in a game where the Sabres ended up taking the loss by a score of 3-0. Their PDO at even strength was 93 and they earned an oZS percentage of 51.4%. They had 2 opportunities on the power play in this outing but weren't able to put one in the back of the net. They had a Fenwick percentage of 47.9% by amassing a Fenwick of 35 and the Penguins finishing with a 38 Fenwick at even strength. The Sabres notched 0 goals out of the 24 shots on goal they tried. Buffalo went home with a 48.9% Corsi rating. These Corsi stats tell us the story of the kind of game Buffalo played and you could say that they have had better days on the ice.

Buffalo has attempted 728 shots (27th in professional hockey) and has accumulated a shot percentage of 7.69%, while allowing their opponents 804 shots. They have a penalty kill percentage of 79.66% on their opponents 59 power play opportunities, and their save percentage sits at 89.3%. They have a tally of 70 power play chances and they have earned a power play rate of 27.14%. The Sabres are sitting with 37 goals at even strength and 19 goals (12th in professional hockey) while having more men on the ice. They have allowed 86 goals to be scored by way of 74 goals at even strength and 12 goals while they had less men on the ice. On the campaign, the Buffalo Sabres have tallied 56 goals, 16 points, as well as a points percentage of .308.

On the other side of the ice you are likely to see Carter Hutton in the crease. He has accrued 5,597 stops out of 6,152 shots taken against him, which gives him a save % of .910. Hutton has earned a lifetime record of 94-86-27 and has been in net for 229 contests. He has started in 201 contests and has accumulated 12,369 minutes. Hutton's quality start percentage comes out to 50.7% and he has qualified for 102 quality starts in his NHL career. Teams are averaging 2.69 goals/game and he has allowed 555 goals in total.

Who will win tonight's NHL game ATS?

Josh's Pick: Take Buffalo (+191)

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