Capitals (-125) @ FLYERS (+115) 7:00PM
Pick: Capitals (-125)
Two days ago, the Capitals (41-22-7) were bested by the Penguins by a score of 5-3. They fought hard, F Alex Ovechkin joined F Sidney Crosby in the 1200 career point club. F Evgeni Malkin hit the 1000 career point milestone in this game as well, huge milestones for both parties. Washington needs to keep pushing onward if they want to maintain their 1st place stature in their division tonight. They’ve been hot recently though and will look to rebound after a tough los to their division rivals.
The Flyers (34-27-8) are 5 points removed from the final wild card spot. The competition in the east is stiff as the teams in the playoff mix refuse to lie down. The post season at this point might be a pipe dream for Broad Street Bullies this season but that doesn’t mean they won’t give it their all. They are still without F Jakub Voracek who will be serving the second game of his two-game suspension tonight which commissioner Gary Bettman upheld yesterday after Voracek’s camp protested it. This one just isn’t in the cards for Philly tonight. The Caps have too much as stake.
Canadiens (+115) @ ISLANDERS (-125) 7:00pm
Pick: Islanders (-125)
The Canadiens (37-26-7) will visit New York tonight for an intense matchup to try and solidify themselves as a wild card team this season. As of late they’ve been playing .500 hockey going 5-5-0 in their last 10. They need to keep pushing if they don’t want the Blue Jackets to take their spot this year. They’ve got the fire power, now its time to see if they have the grit to get it done.
The Islanders (40-22-7) so desperately want to claim their spot back at the top of the Metro over the Capitals. Their schedule isn’t getting any easier down the stretch. They’ve shown they can beat better teams than the Habs this season so look for them to keep on trucking along in their quest for playoff glory.
Penguins (-160) @ SABRES (+145) 7:00pm
Pick: Penguins (-160)
The Penguins (38-23-9) are a team on a mission. They came off of a great win against the defending Stanley Cup champs a few days ago, F Jake Guentzel is on fire thanks to F Sidney Crosby (shocker) and F Evgeni Malkin joined the many other NHL greats in the 1000-point club. They’ve got to be feeling good after all of that. Look for them to continue this hot streak tonight against the lagging Sabres.
The Buffalo Sabres (30-30-9) were extremely impressive at the start of the season turning many heads around the league. F Jeff Skinner was a behemoth when it came to filling the back of the net and they looked to be turning things around. They are still trending in the right direction but fell short this year. The Penguins will eat up the chance to grab 2 points against a non-playoff team so look for that to happen tonight.