The Washington Capitals (25-9-4) travel to meet the New York Islanders (24-10-4) Tuesday with a 7 p.m. ET puck drop at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum Below, we analyze the Capitals-Islanders odds and lines, with NHL picks and predictions.
The Capitals won back-to-back games in New Jersey on Friday and Sunday, outscoring the Devils by a 7-5 count in the two outings. Those victories came on the heels of a loss on Thursday in their previous visit to the Islanders, falling 8-4 as short ‘dogs.
The Islanders doubled up the Caps 8-4 on April Fool’s Day, and they snuck by the Flyers 3-2 in a shootout last time out on Saturday behind rookie goaltender Ilya Sorokin. The home side has had a rare two-day break, and they’ll be rested and raring to go.
Capitals at Islanders: Odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 7:45 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Capitals +110 (bet $100 to win $110) | Islanders -130 (bet $130 to win $100)
- Against the spread/ATS: Capitals +1.5 (-200) | Islanders -1.5 (+185)
- Over/Under: 5.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
Capitals at Islanders: Projected starting goalies
Ilya Samsonov (9-2-1, 2.87 GAA, .896 SV%, 1 SO) vs. Semyon Varlamov (15-7-3, 2.26 GAA, .919 SV%, 3 SO)
Samsonov was on the receiving end of that beatdown from the Isles last Thursday, coughing up six goals on 24 shots before getting pulled early in the third period in favor of Vitek Vanecek. He won his other start against the Isles March 16 in D.C., allowing just one goal on 22 shots in a 3-1 win.
Varlamov was the beneficiary of those eight goals against the Caps last time out, needing to make just 18 saves on 22 shots in the easy win. He was on the opposite end of that 3-1 battle against Samsonov on March 16, allowing three goals on 22 shots. He is 1-3-0 with a 3.82 GAA and .854 SV% in four starts against Washington this season.
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Capitals at Islanders: Odds, lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Capitals 5, Islanders 4
Money line (ML)
The CAPITALS (+110) are a decent play despite last Thursday’s disaster. The Caps have won 10 of their past 13 games on the road, and they’re 4-1 in the past five against teams with a winning overall record.
The Islanders (-130) won last time out against the Capitals on Thursday, but the Caps are still 6-2 in their past eight trips to the Island, with the underdog 12-4 in the previous 16 meetings.
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Against the spread (ATS)
The Capitals +1.5 (-200) will cost you two times your potential return, and that’s not a good bet. Just play the underdogs straight up on the money line for a better value.
AVOID.
Over/Under (O/U)
OVER 5.5 (-110) is my favorite play on the board here, especially since we just saw 12 total goals between the two sides in the most recent meeting.
The Over is 5-1-1 in Washington’s past seven road games, and 4-0-1 in their past five as a road ‘dog.
The Over is also 9-1-1 in the past 11 as a home favorite for the Isles, while going 4-0 in their past four when playing on two days of rest.
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