The Columbus Blue Jackets (11-8-3) and Washington Capitals (11-9-2) meet in the NHL tonight. Puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. EST at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
The Capitals are favored by -1.5 on the puck line, with the over/under set at 6.5 (+105o / -125u). The Capitals are a -170 favorite to win outright, while the Blue Jackets are +140 to pull off the upset.
Let's get into my Blue Jackets vs. Capitals predictions and NHL picks.
Blue Jackets vs. Capitals Odds, Pick
| Blue Jackets Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+1.5 -175 | 6.5 +105o / -125u | +140 |
| Capitals Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-1.5 +150 | 6.5 +105o / -125u | -170 |
- Blue Jackets vs. Capitals Spread: Capitals -1.5 (+150 ), Blue Jackets +1.5 (-175)
- Blue Jackets vs. Capitals Over/Under: 6.5 (+105o / -125u)
- Blue Jackets vs. Capitals Moneyline: Blue Jackets +140, Capitals -170
Blue Jackets vs. Capitals Preview
Columbus Blue Jackets
The Blue Jackets have to be running on fumes, no?
They just went through a stretch of playing eight games in 13 nights, with five of those games on the road. Yet somehow, they came out of it with points in seven of those games with a 4-1-3 record, slowly climbing up the Eastern Conference.
Luckily, Columbus has a solid foundation with Kirill Marchenko, who’s averaging a point per game. Marchenko’s gone pointless in his last three, but he’s consistently a threat to light the lamp at any time.
Defenseman Zach Werenski has also been on fire, scoring points in six consecutive games, while Adam Fantilli has five points in his last four.
Jackets’ coach Dean Evason has his boys humming, because even in these two weeks where it’s been nothing but puck, they’re playing to an eighth-best 54.09 xGF% and a 12th-best 2.48 xGA/60.
Columbus has fared pretty decently on special teams, scoring on the power play 23% of the time in its last 17 attempts. Although it started the season poorly on the penalty kill, it has performed at an 85% success rate.
Goaltender Jet Greaves seems to be the guy that Evason is relying on since Elvis Merzlikins has reeked of inconsistency his whole career.
I’d be curious if he still rolls with Greaves, since he’s been taking on a heavy workload, but he brings a sense of stability that Columbus hasn’t had in a long time with an 8.8 GSAx.
Washington Capitals
Aside from Alex Ovechkin becoming the first player in NHL history to hit 900 goals, it’s been a forgettable start to the season for the Capitals.
After winning the Jack Adams Trophy last season, Spencer Carbery rode the momentum to start 4-1, but since then, the Capitals have gone 7-8-2.
Within that stretch, they won three in a row last week, and it’s no wonder why they’re playing to an 11th-best expected goals with a 53.5 xGF%, but the defense is brutal with a 2.83 xGA/60.
Surprisingly, Washington is only scoring 14% on the power play over the past two weeks, and that penalty kill has been absolutely brutal – succeeding only 72% of the time. The Caps have also let up a power-play goal in six straight games.
I want to say Logan Thompson has done his part to keep the team alive, but the last game against the Tampa Bay Lightning suggests otherwise.
He managed to start, but let up four goals in six shots faced, before Carbery pulled him for Charlie Lindgren.
And in the starts leading up to that, he’s played to a lowly .896 SV%.
Blue Jackets vs. Capitals Prediction
I actually see two ways to go about this and they’re both at plus value.
Firstly, I think the Blue Jackets are way undervalued here. I understand that the Jackets are on the road, and they’ve played a ton of hockey down the stretch.
But can we really ignore how well they’ve been in all aspects of the game? I can’t. And for one, Evason is one of the more disciplined coaches in hockey, and with the perfect blend of veterans and youngsters, I can see this trend continuing.
Washington, albeit being a bipolar squad, still has a lot of goal scorers at its disposal. Ovechkin, along with Tom Wilson and Dylan Strome, not to mention youngster Ryan Leonard, the Capitals are a team that can cause headaches.
The only way I don’t put money on the moneyline is if Merzlikins starts for Columbus. Because in that case, I’m happy to back the over, which sits at +105.
Washington has found itself in three consecutive games where the total reached eight goals or higher. If it has to face a goalie like Merzlikins, that’s cause alone for a high-scoring duel.
Pick: Blue Jackets ML if Greaves starts | Over 6.5 if Merzlikins starts
