There are six games taking place on Tuesday night across the NHL. Among them is an intriguing East Division battle featuring the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Washington Capitals. Both franchises have been at or near the top of the Eastern Conference in recent seasons. The presence of stars Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin on opposing sides has really helped a bit of a rivalry develop between the Penguins and Capitals in recent years. The two teams are separated by just 2 points in the realigned and loaded 2021 East Division. The following is an NHL betting preview of tonight’s Penguins – Capitals matchup. Included are the NHL betting odds, key betting trends and a look at where to find the best NHL betting value in the market regardless of which side you wish to pick.
NHL Betting Preview: Picks, Odds & Betting Trends
Penguins vs. Capitals Game Info
Pittsburgh Penguins (9-6-1, 19 pts) at Washington Capitals (9-5-3, 21 pts)
Date: Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2021
Venue: Capital One Arena, Washington D.C.
Start Time: 7 p.m. EST
Coverage: NBCSN, NBC Sports Washington, AT&T SportsNet-Pittsburgh
Penguins Outlook
The Penguins enter tonight’s NHL betting matchup on a recent tear that has seen them win five of their last six games. Most recently, Pittsburgh swept a pair of home games against the Islanders. In the latter game this past Saturday, Crosby was honored by teammates as he played in his 1,000th NHL game. He then had two assists in the game, bringing his season points total to 15 (6 goals, 9 assists). After moving on from Matt Murray, the Penguins have found a solid answer in net with Tristan Jarry. While he will look to improve upon a pedestrian .892 save percentage, the back-to-back against the Islanders saw him stop 64 of the 67 shots he faced. Pittsburgh remains without defenseman Brian Dumoulin but got encouraging news when he was able to complete some individual skating drills last week
Capitals Outlook
The Capitals come into tonight’s game having won three of their last four. This includes a road win over the same Penguins team they’ll host tonight exactly one week ago. That was the only Washington win in four prior matchups against the Penguins this season. T.J. Oshie showed out in the Caps’ most recent outing against the Devils. His 2-goal, 1-assist line powered Washington to a 4-3 win. Let’s revisit that Crosby-Ovechkin rivalry for a minute. It’s perhaps only fitting that Ovechkin has the exact same season stat line (6 goals, 9 assists) as Crosby entering tonight’s head-to-head matchup. Tonight might also mark the long-awaited return of Capitals goaltender Ilya Samsonov from virus protocol. After being without a couple of additional players two weeks ago due to virus issues, Washington is at near full strength ahead of tonight’s NHL betting showdown.
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Penguins vs. Capitals NHL Betting Picks + NHL Odds Shopping
Using Awesemo’s OddsShopper tool, we can easily compare the NHL odds for Penguins – Capitals NHL betting across the major Pennsylvania sportsbooks. The odds expressed are from 4 p.m. EST on Feb. 23 and are subject to change throughout the day before puck-drop. Make sure to check out the OddsShopper tool yourself for the most up-to-date odds before making your NHL betting picks.
Outlined below are the best available NHL betting odds for wagering on either side of the moneyline, point spread and total for tonight’s Penguins – Capitals matchup.
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NHL Odds: Moneyline
Penguins: (-104) — BetRivers, DraftKings
Capitals: (-106) — FanDuel
NHL Odds: Puckline
Penguins: +1.5 (-270) — FanDuel
Capitals: -1 (+155) — BetRivers
NHL Odds: Total
Over: 6.5 (-107) — BetRivers
Under: 6.5 (-110) — FanDuel
Penguins vs. Capitals Betting Trends
- The Penguins are 7-4 SU in their last eleven games against the Capitals (3-1 this season).
- The Penguins are 2-8 SU in their last ten road games.
- The total has gone Over in 10 of the Capitals’ last 15 games.
Penguins vs. Capitals Prediction
The Penguins have been the hotter team of late and have also had the Capitals number so far this season. The NHL betting odds have essentially made this game a complete pick-’em, and rightfully so. Washington is at near full strength, but Samsonov could be rusty if this is indeed his first game back in net after being sidelined for over two weeks. With the teams so evenly matched, it seems sensical to back the Penguins at slightly better moneyline value.
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