The Washington Capitals (39-14-8) travel to face off against the New York Rangers (31-26-4) on Wednesday, March 5th. This game will be played at Madison Square Garden in New York and televised on TNT. The Rangers are coming off a win in their previous game, while the Capitals are looking to get back on track from a loss to the Hurricanes. Puck drop is set for 7:30 ET.

Capitals vs Rangers

The Washington Capitals Look To Bounce Back From A Loss

Washington’s 4-2 loss to the Hurricanes dropped their record to 39-14-8. The Capitals were the underdogs on the puck line, and the total of 6 goals matched the pre-game line.

After falling behind early, Washington scored twice in the first period to take the lead. However, they allowed three unanswered goals, including an empty-netter, to seal the defeat.

The New York Rangers Are Coming Off A Win

The Rangers improved to 31-26-4 with a 5-2 road win over the Islanders. New York covered the puck line as -1.5 goal favorites, with the total of 7 goals surpassing the pre-game line of 6.

Four different players scored for the Rangers, with Artemi Panarin leading the way with two goals. The Rangers jumped out to a 2-0 lead before the Islanders closed the gap to 3-2. New York then added two more goals to seal the victory.

Washington Offense Breakdown

Alex Ovechkin netted his 7th goal of the season, scoring on a power play with 44 seconds left in the first period. Brandon Duhaime followed with his 2nd goal, just 11 seconds before the first intermission. Nic Dowd picked up his 2nd assist of the year, while Dylan Strome added his 13th assist on Ovechkin’s goal.

Washington managed 21 shots on goal but was held scoreless after the first period. The Capitals had 15 giveaways in the game.

Rangers Offense Breakdown

Artemi Panarin led the way for the Rangers with two goals, including his 9th of the season on an empty net and his 8th on a power play. Chris Kreider opened the scoring with his 8th goal, coming on a shorthanded opportunity. Vincent Trocheck added his 4th goal, while Adam Edstrom netted his 1st of the season.

The Rangers took 40 shots on goal and recorded 8 assists. Mika Zibanejad picked up his 8th assist on Panarin’s empty-netter and his 7th on Kreider’s shorthanded goal. New York had 14 giveaways in their 5-2 win over the Islanders.

Washington Team Defense

Washington’s defense gave up the first goal of the game at 5:59 in the first period, and after taking a 2-1 lead, they allowed three unanswered goals—two in the second period and an empty-netter late in the third. Charlie Lindgren made 41 saves with a 93.2% save percentage, but the Capitals’ defense managed just two takeaways and 20 hits.

New York Team Defense

Defensively, the Rangers allowed two goals, both in the second period, but shut out the Islanders in the first and third. Igor Shesterkin made 35 saves with a 94.6% save percentage, while the defense contributed 10 takeaways and 19 hits.

Capitals vs Rangers Trends

• Washington has played well in their previous 5 road games, going 3-2 straight up. In this stretch, they averaged 4 goals per game while allowing 2. The team also performed well vs the puck line at 3-2.
• When looking at their past ten home matchups, New York has an puck line record of 6-4 while averaging 3 per game. The team went 6-4 overall in these games.
• In their last five games as the betting underdog, the Rangers have a straight up record of 2-3 and an puck line mark of 4-1.
• In their last three games as the betting favorite, the Capitals have a straight up record of 1-2 and an puck line mark of 0-3.

Capitals vs Rangers Prediction

For a moneyline pick, I’m taking the Rangers to pick up on a win over the Capitals at home. With the moneyline sitting at -102, I’ll be locking in a bet on the Rangers straight-up.

Our projections have the Rangers pulling out a win as the underdog. But if you’re not as bullish as we are on the Rangers, we’d recommend at least getting a bet down on them to cover the puck line.

For those looking at the over/under line set at 6 goals, our expectation is that this game will surpass that mark, and we suggest making a bet on the over.

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All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!

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* All odds are provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.Action247 does not warrant the accuracy of completeness of the information, text, graphics, links or other items contained within these post.