| NHL Playoff Prediction: Washington Capitals vs Philadelphia Flyers |
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| Written by Scott Burgess | |||||||
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Tuesday, 22 April 2008
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 Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Quarter Finals between the Washington Capitals and the Philadelphia Flyers goes tonight, in Washington. The Capitals could be the 21st team in NHL history to come back from a 3-1 deficit. Oddsmakers at Betway.com have the Capitals as 2.10 home favs over the Flyers with the over/under set at 5 ½; goals. Get your NHL Playoff Prediction in now at Betway.comThe Flyers jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in Game 6, and it appeared that the Caps season was all but over. But second-period goals from Nicklas Backstrom and Alexander Semin tied the score, and then Ovechkin took over. The NHL lead scorer gave the Capitals the lead on a breakaway early in the third, and then added a power-play goal in the Capitals' 4-2 win. Cristobal Huet made 33 saves on the night and he now is 3-2-1 SU with a 2.96 GAA, he went 9-0 SU before they made it into the playoffs. The Caps are 2-1 SU at home throughout the playoffs and they are 8-1 SU during their last nine games on home ice. They’ve recorded a power play goal or better in four straight games, but their penalty kill has let them down with five goals in four games. They’ll need to stay out of the penalty box if they want to increase their chances of advancing further. Alexander Semin, Mike Green, Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom all have three goals apiece for the Caps. Good news for the Caps is home teams are 77-44 SU in Game 7. The Flyers did everything they could to slow down Ovechkin, but Game 6 loss was the one that hurt the most. Philly is 6-6 SU in Game 7s, they’ve lost two playoff series after leading 3-1. They are 1-3 in Game 7s on the road, with their only win coming at Pittsburgh in a second-round series in 1989. Not good news! They’ll need better goaltending from Marty Biron, who had allowed at least three goals in every game except Game 2. Biron is 0-5 SU on the second night of back-to-back starts this season. Daniel Briere leads his team and the playoffs with six goals and 10pts. Vaclav Prospal scored twice in the series opener, but has scored just once since. Mike Knuble had five points in the series but he’s been ruled out for the series with a torn hamstring suffered in Game 5. Flyers are 3-7 SU on the road in their last ten road games. Recent Trends to Consider
GAME: Philadelphia Flyers (44-32-5-6) at Washington Capitals (46-33-4-4) DATE/TIME: Tuesday, April 22 - 7:00 PM EST LINE: Betway.com TOTAL: 5 ½ PICK: Washington 2.10 The Bottom Line: The Capitals have all the momentum and nothing to lose after going down 3-1 in the series. If they can get the first goal goalie Marty Biron should feel more comfortable in net. The Flyers are going to hit Ovechkin every chance they get. Get your NHL Playoff Prediction in now at Betway.com                        |
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