By Andrew Lauro – Wannamakeabet Staff Writer
L.A. Kings +121 (14-8-3) @ Washington Capitals -134 (14-10-1)
The Kings are 7-3-1 on the road while the Capitals are 8-4-0 at home. Both teams are hot coming into this game, the Kings have won 2 straight, and the Capitals have won 3 straight. The Kings are tied for 1st in the Pacific division, and the Capitals have the first Wild Card spot.
Key Components for both teams:
The Kings have allowed the 2nd fewest goals against in the league with 57 GA.
Jonathan Quick is on fire in his last 3 starts he’s 2-1-0 with a SV% of .949 and a GAA of 1.33. He’s 7-2-0 against the Capitals in his career. These are solid numbers going into this game.
For the Capitals Alexander Ovechkin is coming off a game where he scored a hat trick. He has 5 goals and 1 assist in his past 5 games, and leads the team in goals scored with 18.
Goaltender Braden Holtby is 13-5-0 on the season with a GAA of 2.59 and a SV% of .921. He hasn’t played the Kings much in his career, facing them only 3 times posting a 1-1-1 record with a .920 SV% and a 2.33 GAA. Don’t know what to expect from Holtby with his lack of experience against the Kings.
If the Kings can keep those pucks out of the net and Quick keeps up the solid play the Kings could win this game and keep their win streak going. If Ovechkin continues scoring and Holtby continues his dominance in net the Capitals can win this game.
These teams head to head in the last 10 games:
| Kings | Capitals | |
| Record | 7-3-0 | 3-4-3 |
| GF Average | 2.80 | 2.60 |
| SPG Average | 31.40 | 25.20 |
| PPG | 5 | 5 |
| # of PP’s | 30 | 30 |
| PP% | 16.67% | 16.67% |
| PK% | 83.33% | 83.33% |
| 5-2 As the Dog | 9-7 As the Fav |
I would go with the Kings in this one at +121. Their road record is good, and they seem to always play well against the Capitals.