New York Rangers vs Washington Capitals Prediction, Preview and Odds - 04/26/2024

Game Time: 7:00 pm ET, Friday, April 26, 2024

Venue:  Capital One Arena, Washington, DC

Where to Watch:  TNT, MAX

DraftKings:  Moneyline:  Rangers -170, Capitals +142; Over/Under:  5.5 goals

Bet365:  Moneyline:  Rangers -175, Capitals +145; Over/Under:  5.5 goals

BetMGM:  Moneyline:  Rangers -175, Capitals +145; Over/Under:  5.5 goals

New York Rangers:  55-23-4 (1st place, Metropolitan Division)

Washington Capitals:  40-31-11 (4th place, Metropolitan Division)

Do not miss out on our expert handicapper analysis! Brian Bitler is on a HOT STREAK in the NHL on a 10-3 NHL RUN for +$7,190 PROFIT! Make sure you check out his picks and many more from the expert handicappers featured in the Shop Picks section.

New York Rangers:  7-3-0 last 10

Washington Capitals:  4-5-1 last 10

The Rangers are entering this game with 114 points, a 55-23-4 record overall, and they were 25-12-4 in their road games this regular season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game off a win against the Washington Capitals in their last game, winning that one at home 4-3. Vincent Trocheck, Mika Zibanejad, K'Andre Miller, and Jack Roslovic each scored 1 goal for them in that game. Erik Gustafsson and Alexis Lafrenière each led the team in assists with 2 while Mika Zibanejad led the team in shots on net in that game with 6. Igor Shesterkin was the starting goalie in that game and he allowed 3 goals on 25 shots with 22 saves and a .880 sv percentage. Their offense has scored 282 goals this season averaging 3.4 goals per game and their defense has allowed their opponents to score 229 goals against them allowing 2.8 goals per game.

The Capitals are entering this game with 91 points, a 40-31-11 record overall, and they were 22-12-7 in their home games this regular season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game off a loss against the New York Rangers in their last game, losing that one on the road 4-3. Tom Wilson, Connor McMichael, and Dylan Strome each scored 1 goal for them in that game. Tom Wilson, John Carlson, Hendrix Lapierre, and Max Pacioretty each led the team in assists with 1 while Connor McMichael led the team in shots on net in that game with 6. Charlie Lindgren was the starting goalie in that game and he allowed 4 goals on 27 shots with 23 saves and a .852 save percentage. Their offense has scored 220 goals this season averaging 2.7 goals per game and their defense has allowed their opponents to score 257 goals against them allowing 3.1 goals per game.

The current betting odds have the Capitals listed as an underdog in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. This is game 3 of a 7 game series between the 1st seeded Rangers from the Metropolitan Division and the 2nd seeded Wild Card, the Capitals, for Round 1 of the NHL Eastern Conference playoffs. The Rangers have a 2-0 series lead after winning game 2 of this series on their home ice. The Rangers have looked great in their games this season as they finished with the most points during the regular season, winning the Presidents' Trophy. They looked like the best team in the NHL in game 1 with a great performance, winning that game 4-1, but they didn't look as good in game 2. They won game 2 by a score of 4-3 and they were never really behind in the game, but they allowed the Capitals to hang around and that could be trouble for them here. The Capitals have been terrible in their road games all season but they looked a lot better on home ice with their 22-12-7 home record. The Capitals have also been a more defensive team in their games since they don't really score a lot of goals so it will be a lot easier for them to execute their game plan here with the home crowd behind them. The Capitals are also going to be desperate in this game since no team ever wants to go down 2-0 in the series so expect them to bring their best effort here and throw everything they have at the Rangers to avoid a 3-0 deficit. The best way to place a bet here is on the Capitals to win this game or on the puckline for them to keep it close. 

Rangers Capitals Prediction:  Our NHL Pick for Friday, April 26, 2024 (7:00 pm ET start time) is Capitals 2 Rangers 1.

Don't miss our champion handicappers free picks and expert hockey picks today. And if you enjoyed this New York Rangers Washington Capitals prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our weekly NHL predictions and previews.

New York Rangers: 38-22 (+12.8 units) on the moneyline off a win against a division rival. 39-21 (+10.8 units) on the moneyline after a close win by 1 goal in their previous game. 8-2 OVER after a home game where both teams score 3 or more goals. 22-12 OVER after playing a game where 7 or more total goals were scored.

Washington Capitals: 14-20 (-8 units) on the moneyline off a loss against a division rival. 12-20 (-8.6 units) on the moneyline after playing 3 consecutive road games. 15-6 OVER playing with triple revenge - 3 straight losses vs. opponent. 48-27 OVER revenging a same season loss vs opponent.

New York Rangers:  B. Wheeler (RW) out for season - Lower Body. F. Chytil (C) out for season - Upper Body.

Washington Capitals:  V. Iorio (D) Ques Fri - Upper Body. R. Sandin (D) Early May - Upper Body. N. Jensen (D) Early May - Upper Body. E. Bear (D) Out indefinitely - Personal. N. Backstrom (C) out for season - Hip.

“I expected that tonight, the way it played out, physical and some attitude and directness inside of the game. I thought our guys responded well, it was a hard-fought game.” - Peter Laviolette after his team’s win against the Capitals in game 2 of this series on Tuesday.

“Much better than the first game, we did a ton of really, really good things. We make four or five (mistakes), probably even a few more, that you just can't make this time of year. … The margin for error is so small, so those mistakes become game-changers for us.” - Spencer Carbery after his team’s loss against the Rangers in game 2 of this series on Tuesday.

LW Panarin, Artemi

C Trocheck, Vincent

RW Lafrenière, Alexis

LD Lindgren, Ryan

RD Fox, Adam

G Shesterkin, Igor

LW Ovechkin, Alex

C McMichael, Connor

RW Oshie, T.J.

LD Fehérváry, Martin

RD Carlson, John

G Lindgren, Charlie

Points: A. Panarin (120)

Goals: A. Panarin (49)

Assists: A. Panarin (71)

GAA: I. Shesterkin (2.58)

Points: D. Strome (67)

Goals: A. Ovechkin (31)

Assists: J. Carlson (42)

GAA: C. Lindgren (2.67)

Coaches:

New York Rangers: Peter Laviolette (1st season)

Washington Capitals: Spencer Carbery (1st season)