NHL Saturday Game Predictions: Capitals at Vegas

Knights Must Protect Home Ice, Must Make Clear Stand in West

Our NHL Saturday game predictions have a 14-game slate to choose from, so let’s start our NHL picks tomorrow by swinging over to Vegas where trouble might be brewing for the Golden Knights (28-16-2, 58 points) as they take on their old Stanley Cup nemesis Washington Capitals (25-17-6, 56 points). In addition, our NHL betting card lights up with the Carolina Hurricanes (28-9-8, 64 points) on the island against the New York Islanders (23-19-5, 51 points). Let’s take a deeper dive into both games and a few that fall just outside the radar but could give us a betting edge.

Must-Watch Television

Capitals logo Washington Capitals at Vegas Golden Knights Golden Knights logo

NHL Points: Capitals (-289 units ML, 20-26 O/U) Knights (+74 units ML, 18-24 O/U)
Date, Time & Streaming:
Moneyline: +105/-115
Total: 6

Something smells in the desert, and it’s not the scent of the nearest buffet to T-Mobile Arena. The Vegas Golden Knights have lost three straight games, all at home against opponents they should handle. Thursday’s loss to the Detroit Red Wings, 3-2, as a -170 favorite was the latest example.

So what has gone wrong for the VGK after a 13-3 start that saw them sit atop the Pacific Division for most of the season? First, Injuries. Mark Stone is back on the shelf with another back issue after having off-season surgery. Second, the expectations of Jack Eichel are ridiculous.

There was talk in the Vegas media about Eichel being a 90-100 point player, if healthy. That last part was the kicker because Eichel has never proven that he could stay off the NHL injury report, and it’s gotten worse over the last three seasons. Not including this year, the eight-year pro has played in just 55 NHL games, and has averaged just 41 games played over the last three seasons. To expect him to become something he’s just not is unrealistic.

Lastly, we factor in Bruce Cassidy who was fantastic in Boston, but ultimately lost the room, and players who refused to play under his regime (Krejci). Cassidy has already used public blame the players before the Wings’ loss. That didn’t work, so what’s next? It will be interesting to see how Vegas responds in this match-up, with anger being the hopeful response around town, but until we see they’re capable of flipping a switch we’d recommend riding with the Capitals who clinched a Stanley Cup on this sheet in 2018.

Let’s continue our NHL Saturday game predictions by going back East for what looks like a tremendous betting opportunity.

Hurricanes logo Carolina Hurricanes at New York Islanders Islanders logo

NHL Points: Hurricanes (28-9-8, 66 points) Islanders (23-19-5, 51 points)
Date, Time & Streaming:
Moneyline: +146/-167
Total: 5.5

Hurricanes’ Max Pacioretty suffered another leg injury, with an MRI that was scheduled for Friday, but the Carolina Depth will swallow this loss up and continue to move forward as look to get some separation from the New Jersey Devils in the Metro.

The truth about the Pacioretty loss is, the Hurricanes won’t miss a beat because “Patches” has been out most of the season anyway. When it comes to the Islanders we know that Carolina has owned them through the years with 11 wins in their last 13 meetings and 22 of 29 in New York.

This is a team that has a history of going on a defensive run with 71 wins in their last 102 games after allowing two goals or less in their previous game. The best part is, we get to bet Carolina with a small chip on their shoulder with a less-than-stellar recent form that has seen the team split their last 10 games.

Despite their inconsistencies, their 5-2 win against the Wild, Thursday, was an effort that we have come to expect from Rod Brind’Amour’s team, who can suffocate you with relentless offensive pressure while forcing opponents to go a full 60 feet to beat them on offense. The Islander’s power play has to be better than 27th in the league with a 17% success rate to steal games like this. Take the Hurricanes and the relatively generous number.

Ice Chips

Lightning logo Tampa Bay Lightning at Calgary Flames Flames logo

NHL Points: Lightning (29-14-1, 59 points) Flames (21-16-9, 60 points)
Date, Time & Streaming:

No real position on this game, which is why it’s in the ice chip category. This will be a tremendous game to take notes on, but no clear betting angle considering we never know which Flames team is going to show up.

It would be fair to say that most have forgotten about the Lightning who are sitting in third place in the Atlantic, 16 points behind the Boston Bruins, but Jon Cooper’s team knows it’s about getting invited to the dance at the end of the day.

The Lightning have wins in 9 of their last 12 games as they finish up their five-game road trip that has seen Tampa win three of their first four. The Calgary Flames are fresh off a loss (4-1) to the injury-riddled Colorado Avalanche who were without Cale Makar.

‘Colorado scored three times in the first seven minutes to put the game away early. The Flames are not what they were last year and shouldn’t be thought off like that by bettors.’

Daryl Sutter’s team has been one of the worst teams to wager on with 1153 units lost to date. Only four other teams have lost more than Calgary, making them neck in neck with the Florida Panthers for the honors of being one of the most disappointing teams in the league. Sit back and enjoy what should be a good early watch.

Wait For the Highlights

Sharks logo San Jose Sharks at Columbus Blue Jackets Blue Jackets logo

NHL Points: Sharks (14-23-9, 378 points) Jackets (13-30-2, 28 points)
Date, Time & Streaming:

What would a big schedule be without a few games that can be used to reconnect with the family, but still worth having a few dollars involved. We’re going to continue riding the over with both of these teams.

The Sharks are on a 4-game over streak after a 5-3 win over the Dallas Stars. During the streak, San Jose games have averaged almost eight goals per game. They’ll face one of the worst defensive teams in hockey who allowed five goals to the Anaheim Ducks. Take the over, but watch the score on your phone.

That does it for NHL Saturday game predictions. Jump on these games when the NHL betting odds come out because each of these games will likely move in our direction.
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