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Bet on Washington vs NY Islanders NHL Lines

Written by on February 17, 2016

The semi-hot New York Islanders will look to cool off the incendiary Washington Capitals when the two Stanley Cup hopefuls square off on Thursday night in a NHL betting matchup that looks like a flat-put thriller just waiting to happen. Now, let’s find out which one of these teams will keep their wining ways going.

Bet on Washington vs NY Islanders NHL Lines & TV Info

When: Thursday, February 18, 8 PM ET. Where: Madison Square Garden, New York TV: MSG+ NHL Lines: TBA

Why Bet on Washington (41-10-3-1, 27-28 ATS)

The Caps have won six of their last seven games including a humbling 3-1 win over the Kings on Wednesday as a -125 home Moneyline favorite. Veteran winger Justin Williams assisted on Evgeny Kuznetsov’s game-winning goal with 2:02 left and goalie Philipp Grubauer made 39 saves to lead Washington to victory. “He finds a way to get things done. That’s his talent, the intangible,” Capitals head coach Barry Trotz said of Williams. “You can’t put an analytics stat on what he seems to be able to do…He has great timing and a great sense of gamesmanship.” Washington has scored at least three goals in each of their last seven games and nine times in their last 10 games.

Why Bet on the NY Islanders (30-19-3-3, 25-30 ATS)

The Islanders have won four of their last five games including their convincing 4-1 win over Detroit on Monday night. Brock Nelson, Josh Bailey, Marek Zidlicky and Ryan Strome scored for the Islanders, while Thomas Greiss recorded 28 saves for his fifth straight win. Nelson and Strome each had a goal and an assist, while Johnny Boychuk added two assists for his first multi-point game of the season. “The team played real well,” Greiss said. “It was a big comeback for us after last game, it wasn’t the best. They are important points, especially against that team. It was a big win.”

Expert Betting Pick & Final Score Prediction

It’s kind of hard to go against Washington these days, no matter where the Caps are playing. Washington ranks first in scoring at 3.3 goals per game while also ranking second in defense by limiting their opponents to just 2.3 goals per contest. The Caps also rank first in power play success (23.7%) and second in penalty killing (83.9%). I know the Islanders have won four straight at home, but they’re also just 4-3 over their last seven games and gave up at least five goals in two of those contests. The home team in this rivalry is 4-1 in the last five meetings, but Washington has gone 7-1 in their last eight games against teams from the Metropolitan division while also going 8-2 in their last 10 games against a team with a winning record and 20-8 in their last 28 road games. Washington is simply too good offensively with Alex Ovechkin leading the league in goals (35) and center Evgeny Kuznetsov ranking fifth in points (57). My final score prediction: Washington 4 New York 2