The No.1 seeded Washington Capitals host the No.8 seed Montreal Canadiens, Thursday April 15, as the Caps are the favorites to win the Cup. Washington and Montreal split the season series with two wins apiece. NHL oddsmakers at BETUS.com have the Capitals as -270 moneyline favs to beat the Canadiens (+235) with the over/under listed at 6 goals . Be sure to get your 2010 NHL Playoffs: 2010 NHL Playoffs: Montreal Canadiens vs Washington Capitals Predictions in now at BETUS.com
The Canadiens stayed in after winning just three of their final ten games and now find themselves facing the East’s best. They went 11-7-4 in the last quarter of the season, but eight of those wins came in the first 11 games. Michael Cammalleri came back from his knee injury to play in the final nine games of the season, but has only managed two points since Jan 23. He’ll need to help out with some production. Jaroslav Halak appears to be the man in net for the Habs, for now, but interestingly it was Carey Price who played in all four games against Washington this season. Price had a 3.38 GAA. Halak allowed four goals in each of his last two games of the regular season, so he's not a hot goalie right now. Halak is 26-13-5 with a 2.40 GAA and a .924 SVPCT . Montreal right wing Brian Gionta had a goal in each of the final three games and center Scott Gomez had three assists over the last two games. Defenseman Andrei Markov had a goal and two assists in the season finale against Toronto.
The Capitals are top’s in the East after winning six of their last ten games and they’ll be tough to beat at home considering they lost five regular and three in overtime, all season. The Caps have to get off to a good start to buck its current trend of playing in each series to the seventh game. On their side will be goalie Jose Theodore, against his former team, as the red hot goalie hopes to make a quick exit of Montreal. He hasn’t been named starter, but I can’t see him on the bench. Theodore is 20-0-3 with a 2.58 GAA and .922 save percentage in the last three months . He has allowed only nine goals in the third period over that span. However, he played only one time against Montreal this season and gave up four goals on 25 shots in relief of Michal Neuvirth. Since leaving Montreal in 2006, Theodore is 2-1-1 with a 4.05 GAA and .877 save percentage against his former club. Caps right wing Alexander Semin had points in 11 of the final 13 regular season games totaling 9 goals and 7 assists. Center Nicklas Backstrom had 9 points in three games before getting shut out in the season finale against Boston.
Head to Head – The gap in offense in this series could be wide. Washington led the NHL with 3.82 goals per game while Montreal was 26th at 2.56 goals per game. In 5-on-5 play, the Caps had a League-best 213 goals while the Habs had a League-worst 132 goals. However, their power plays are similarly good. Washington was first at 25.2 percent and Montreal was second at 21.8 percent, but the Caps had 52 more advantages than the Canadiens.
Recent Trends to Consider:
- Over is 4-1-1 in the last 6 meetings.
- Home team is 7-3 in the last 10 meetings.
- Canadiens are 1-4 in the last 5 meetings in Washington.
- Capitals are 7-0 in their last 7 games playing on 3 or more days rest.
- Capitals are 4-1 in their last 5 Conference Quarterfinals games.
- Capitals are 13-4 in their last 17 home games vs. a team with a losing road record.
- Capitals are 23-8 in their last 31 games as a favorite of -201 or greater.
Montreal Canadiens vs Washington Capitals
When: Thursday April 15, 2010 7:00 PM ET
Line: BETUS.com
Pick: Caps -270
Point-Spreads.com 2010 NHL Playoffs: Montreal Canadiens vs Washington Capitals Odds & Predictions
The Bottom Line: The Caps will walk away winners. Be sure to get your 2010 NHL Playoffs: Montreal Canadiens vs Washington Capitals Odds & Predictions in now at BETUS.com and receive up to 145% in Cash Bonuses and start winning today!
