by Andrew Lauro – Wannamakeabet Staff Writer
Washington Capitals (18-11-1) +105 vs. New York Islanders (16-10-3) -116 12/11/17 7:00PM EST
The Capitals head to Brooklyn to take on the Islanders Monday night. Washington hot of late winning 4 in a row, and 8-2-0 in their last 10. The Islanders have been mediocre of late 5-4-1 in their last 10 coming off a 3-1 loss to the Boston Bruins.
Team Stats thus far and their league rank:
| Team | Capitals | Islanders |
| Goals For | 92(10th) | 103(Tied for 2nd) |
| Goals Against | 88(14th) | 98(6th most) |
| GFPG Average | 3.06(10th) | 3.55(2nd) |
| GAPG Average | 2.93(18th) | 3.37(Tied 3rd most) |
| PP% | 21.21%(7th) | 20%(11th) |
| PK% | 79.43%(20th) | 72.82%(30th) |
| Shots Per Game | 29.16(30th) | 31.06(19th) |
| Shots Per Game Against | 32.06(14th most) | 32.86(6th most) |
The Islanders are a great team at home this year. They’re 8-1-2. The team overall is well balanced offensively, and they have 6 players with 20 plus points on the year so far.
Islanders top 6 scorers in the last 5 games:
| Josh Bailey | 0G, 4A |
| John Tavares | 1G, 2A |
| Anders Lee | 4G, 0A |
| Mathew Barzal | 2G, 2A |
| Nick Leddy | 0G, 4A |
| Jordan Eberle | 2G, 1A |
The Islanders have been streaky of late. The offense is definitely there, but the goaltending is the fall to their demise. Jaroslav Halak has played in 17 games posting an 8-7-1 record with a GAA of 2.93 and a SV% of .905%. Backup goaltender Thomas Greiss is a bit better than Halak statistically speaking, he’s played in 14 games posting a record of 8-3-2 with a GAA of 3.79 and a SV% of .890%. Despite his record being good it seems as if the Isles offense is bailing him out of the games he’s played in. It’ll be interesting to see who they start against the Capitals. Here are the career splits for both goalies against Washington. Halak is 8-8-0 with a GAA of 2.75 and a SV% of .902%. Greiss is 2-1-1 with a GAA of 2.46 and a SV% of .926%. It seems like Greiss is better statistically, but he doesn’t have the experience playing against them as much as Halak has had.
The Capitals are coming off a 4-2 win over the Rangers Friday night. During their current 4 game winning streak they are outscoring their opponents 18-8. The Capitals aren’t a very good road team, they’re just 6-6-1 on the year, and they’re facing The Islanders who’ve only lost 1 regulation game at home this season. Alexander Ovechkin continues to be an offensive threat for the Caps, on the current 4 game winning streak he has 8 points (3G, 5A). Goaltender Braden Holtby continues his dominance in the crease. In his past 5 games 4-1-0 with a GAA of 2.40 and a SV% of .921%. His career numbers against the Islanders are 13-3-3 with a GAA of 2.32 and a SV% of .924.
Both teams head to head in the last 10 games:
| Team | Capitals | Islanders |
| Record | 6-3-1 | 4-5-1 |
| Goals Per Game Average | 2.80 | 2.50 |
| Shots Per Game Average | 31.50 | 28.60 |
| PPG | 3 | 4 |
| # of PP’s | 33 | 24 |
| PP% | 9.09% | 16.67% |
| PK% | 83.33% | 90.91% |
The Islanders won 2 of the last 3 against the Capitals. The Islanders are 9-1-2 as the favorite. Take the Islanders at -116 to snap the Capitals win streak.