The Washington Capitals (42-23-10) test their might against the Colorado Avalanche (55-14-6) Monday at Ball Arena. Puck drop is set for 8 p.m. ET (ESPN+). Below, we look at the Capitals vs. Avalanche odds and lines, and make our expert NHL picks, predictions and bets.
The Caps have won 5 of 6 after beating the Montreal Canadiens 8-4 Saturday. They have topped 8 goals in 2 of their last 3 games. Star LW Alex Ovechkin has a goal in 5 of the last 6 games. He’s eyeing his ninth 50-goal season of his illustrious career, sitting at 47.
Colorado has won 9 in a row, and the last 3 have been by a total of 11 goals. The Avalanche rolled over the Carolina Hurricanes 7-4 Saturday in a matchup of natural disasters. C Nathan Mackinnon has 9 goals and 5 assists in the last 7 games.
Capitals at Avalanche odds and lines
- Money line: Capitals +170 (bet $100 to win $170) | Avalanche -210 (bet $210 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Capitals +1.5 (-145) | Avalanche -1.5 (+115)
- Over/Under (O/U): 6.5 (O: -130 | U: +105)
Capitals at Avalanche projected goalies
Ilya Samsonov (22-10-4, 3.00 GAA, .897 SV%, 3 SO) vs. Darcy Kuemper (36-9-3, 2.41 GAA, .925 SV%, 5 SO)
Samsonov had a 3-game winning streak snapped with Thursday’s 7-3 loss to Toronto. He has a 3.45 GAA this month, but the offense has been supporting its goaltenders. Samsonov beat the Avs in October, stopping 24 of 27 in a 6-3 win.
Kuemper has won 6 in a row and allowed 2.5 goals per contest. He has a 2.77 GAA this month, but there have been leaks and cracks. Kuemper has allowed 3 goals or more in 3 of 4 games. He stopped 34 of 39 shots in the October loss to the Caps.
Money line
Washington has won 5 of the last 6 meetings, but the last game was nearly 6 months ago. The Caps won in Ball Arena 3-2 in February, 2020. It’s hard to project a team beating this Colorado team on the roll it’s on, but they can’t win them all, right? The Caps are scorching on offense and are battling for playoff positioning. Let’s take the value here and try to cover ourselves later. LEAN CAPITALS +170.
Against the spread
This number isn’t too bad on the spread, but if you think the Caps can get it done in the Avs’ building, we’ll just stick with the money line. PASS.
Over/Under
This one should be fast-paced with lumens flashing all over. Colorado is second in the league in goals per game (3.9), and Washington is eighth (3.4). Both goalies have seen 3 goals or more fairly often lately. The Over has hit in the last 6 for Washington as an underdog and last 9 on the road. The Over is 6-2 in the last 8 games between the two. Let’s hit the OVER 6.5 (-130) a little harder to try to cover the chance we’re taking on the money line.