12:10 pm
March 28

Rangers @ Capitals

Who will WIN this matchup?

New York Rangers (15-14-4)

@ Washington Capitals (22-7-4)

 

Starting Goalies:

Keith Kinkaid(NYR): Unconfirmed

Ilya Samsonov (WSH): Unconfirmed

 

Current odds:

New York Rangers: (+115)

Washington Capitals: (-135)

 

• The New York Rangers have flustered the Washington Capitals this season. The Capitals will try to do better on Sunday afternoon when the Rangers pay a visit. Washington has been sitting at or near the top of the East Division standings for most of this season. The Capitals have won two in a row and nine of their last 10, including a 4-0 victory over the visiting New Jersey Devils on Friday. But New York, with its youth and especially speed, has kept the Washington offense quieter than it has been against other teams. The Capitals have lost three of their four meetings this season, scoring a total of six goals. The Rangers are the only team that has beaten Washington during this 10-game run.

• Washington’s superstar captain Alex Ovechkin scored twice in Friday’s win and has recorded 10 goals in his last 10 contests. Ovechkin now leads the team with 17 goals — 723 for his career — and is a big reason for the recent run after he started a bit slowly.

• Nicklas Backstrom has 10 points (three goals, seven assists) in his past 11 games while Evgeny Kuznetsov is finding his way with 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in his last nine. Plus, the Caps have received strong goaltending from their young tandem of Ilya Samsonov and Vitek Vanecek.

• The Rangers are coming to Washington after a tough 2-1 loss to Philadelphia on Saturday afternoon. New York had won three in a row before falling to the Flyers. Mika Zibanejad scored the only Rangers’ goal and goalie Igor Shesterkin finished with 35 saves. Philadelphia’s Samuel Morin scored his first NHL goal of the season with 4:27 remaining in the game, and that proved to be the winner.

• Zibanejad reached a personal milestone by playing in his 300th game with the Rangers. Ryan Strome’s assist moved his point streak to a career-high eight games (two goals, 11 assists).

• The coaching situation remains in flux as acting coach Kris Knoblauch told the media he wasn’t sure if he’d be behind the bench in Washington. He is 4-2-0 while filling in for David Quinn, who is sidelined due to COVID-19 protocol.

5/10
Confidence
StreakSmarter Pick
Washington Capitals
Previous Pick
Next Pick