Washington Capitals vs Pittsburgh Penguins Prediction, Preview and Odds - 04/09/2022

Game Time: 3:00 pm ET, Saturday, April 9, 2022

Venue:  PPG Paints Arena, Pittsburgh, PA 

Where to Watch:  ABC

DraftKings:  Moneyline:  Capitals +130, Penguins -150; Over/Under:  6.5 goals

Bet365:  Moneyline:  Capitals +125, Penguins -150; Over/Under:  6 goals

BetMGM:  Moneyline:  Capitals +125, Penguins -150; Over/Under:  6 goals

 

Washington Capitals:  38-22-10 (4th place, Metropolitan Division)

Pittsburgh Penguins:  41-21-10 (3rd place, Metropolitan Division)

 

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Washington Capitals:  6-4-0 last 10

Pittsburgh Penguins:  4-5-1 last 10

 

 

 

The Capitals are coming into this game with 86 points, a 38-22-10 record overall, and they are 21-7-5 in their road games this regular season where they will be in this game. They have lost 2 of their last 3 games but are coming into this one off of a win in their last game which snapped a 2 game winning streak that they were on. Their 2 losses in that span were against the Carolina Hurricanes and the Minnesota Wild while their win came against the Tampa Bay Lightning in their last game. They won that game at home 4-3. John Carlson scored 2 goals in that game while Alexander Ovechkin and Martin Fehérváry each scored 1 goal in that one. Alexander Ovechkin led the team in shots on net in that game with 4. Ilya Samsonov was the starting goalie in that game and he allowed 3 goals on 28 shots with 25 saves and a .893 sv percentage. Their offense has scored 230 goals this season averaging 3.3 goals per game and their defense has allowed their opponents to score 205 goals against them allowing 2.9 goals per game. 

 

 

The Penguins are coming into this game with 92 points, a 41-21-10 record overall, and they are 19-11-5 in their home games this regular season where they will be in this game. They have lost 4 of their last 5 games and are coming into this one on a 3 game losing streak. Their last win was against the Minnesota Wild while their 4 losses in that span came against the New York Rangers, the Colorado Avalanche twice, and the Rangers again in their last game. They lost that game on the road 3-0. No one scored a goal in that one as they were shut out. Evan Rodrigues led the team in shots on net in that game with 9. Tristan Jarry was the starting goalie in that game and he allowed 2 goals on 23 shots with 21 saves and a .913 sv percentage. Their offense has scored 237 goals this season averaging 3.3 goals per game and their defense has allowed their opponents to score 197 goals against them allowing 2.7 goals per game. 

 

 

The Penguins have not been playing very well coming into this game. They have lost 3 straight games and their last 4 losses have all been against the same 2 teams. Their captain Sidney Crosby missed their last game when they were shut out by the Rangers and he is still questionable for this game. Crosby is not out with an injury either he is out with an illness so even if he comes back for this game he may not feel 100% out on the ice. They are going up against a Capitals team that has barely played any games over the last 2 weeks and have been very rested coming into this one. They have also been playing poorly recently but they are coming off of a win in their last game against the Lightning and that should give them some confidence for their game against their heated rival here. These games always get chippy and it will likely be a very physical game that the Capitals will be better able to respond to with their rested players. They will have the determination to beat the Penguins and they are catching them in a good spot here. The Capitals will win this game.

 

Capitals Penguins Prediction:  Our NHL Pick for Saturday, April 9, 2022 (3:00 pm ET start time) is Capitals 4 Penguins 2.

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Washington Capitals: 63-54 (-11.3u) on the moneyline off a win or tie in their previous game. 26-27 (-6.7u) on the moneyline after a close win by 1 goal in their previous game. 41-27 OVER in all games.

Pittsburgh Penguins: 46-23 (+6.2 u) on the moneyline in a home game where the total is 6 or more. 37-20 (+10.6u) on the moneyline after allowing 3 goals or more 2 straight games. 13-7 OVER in a home game where the total is 6 or more.

 

 

Washington Capitals:  G. Hathaway (RW) Ques Sat - Illness. C. Hagelin (LW) Out indefinitely - Face injury. J. Snively (LW) Out indefinitely - Wrist injury.

Pittsburgh Penguins:  S. Crosby (C) Ques Sat - Illness. J. Zucker (LW) Ques Sat - Leg injury. B. McGinn (LW) Out indefinitely - Upper Body injury. N. Beaulieu (D) Early May - Lower Body injury.

 

 

 

“He made a couple of big saves throughout the game. You need that. You need those big ones, and I thought he was good.” - Peter Laviolette on their goaltending in their win against the Lightning on Wednesday night.

 

 

“Their goalie did a good job at key moments. Tonight was a tight game." - Kris Letang on their loss against the Rangers on Thursday night.

 

 

 

LW Ovechkin, Alex

C Evgeny Kuznetsov

RW Sheary, Conor

LD Fehérváry, Martin

RD Carlson, John

G Samsonov, Ilya

 

LW Guentzel, Jake

C Malkin, Evgeni

RW Rust, Bryan

LD Dumoulin, Brian

RD Letang, Kris

G Jarry, Tristan

 

 

Points: A. Ovechkin (81)

Goals: A. Ovechkin (43)

Assists: E. Kuznetsov (46)

GAA:  V. Vanecek (2.60)

 

Points: S. Crosby (72)

Goals: J. Guentzel (33)

Assists: K. Letang (53)

GAA: T. Jarry (2.38)

 

Coaches:

Washington Capitals: Peter Laviolette (2nd season)

Pittsburgh Penguins: Mike Sullivan (7th season)