Thursday picks: Habs won't slow down Capitals
Welcome to the NHL Daily Picks where hockey writers Adam Gretz and Chris Peters make their selections for all of the day’s games.
Washington Capitals vs. Montreal Canadiens, 7 p.m. ET
There isn’t a better matchup in the NHL on Thursday night than the one in Montreal that features the two top teams in the Eastern Conference facing off for the first time this season when the Canadiens host the Washington Capitals.
The Canadiens continue life without Carey Price as the reigning MVP winner remains sidelined due to a lower body injury, leaving Mike Condon as their starting goaltender for the next month-and-a-half.
This isn’t a new experience for the Canadiens this season, and it really hasn’t slowed them down since they have the best record in the NHL and have had to start Condon in the majority of their games. He’s played exceptionally well and has pretty much come out of nowhere as an undrafted free agent to help fill in for one of the best goaltenders in the world. Even though eight of his 15 appearances so far this season have come against playoff teams from a year ago, he is going to get his biggest challenge yet on Thursday night when the Capitals come to town.
He hasn’t faced a team — or an offense — like this yet.
The Capitals are not only one of the top teams in the league with a dangerous offense, they are also riding a five-game winning streak that has seen them score 21 goals (that is more than four goals per game), with only three of them coming from Alex Ovechkin.
The player making the biggest impact offensively for the Capitals right now might be Evgeny Kuznetsov who is starting to develop into the star player the team always imagined he would be when they selected him in the first round (No. 26 overall) of the 2010 NHL draft. With 26 points in 23 games he is not only one of the top scorers in the NHL this season, he is also on a pace to shatter his numbers from a year ago, his first full season in the league. He already has seven multi-point games this season, including three during the Capitals’ current five-game winning streak.
When you combine an offense that has one of the best goal scorers in league history (Ovechkin) and a 1-2 punch down the middle in Nicklas Backstrom and Kuznetov, with a defense and goaltender that has allowed the fewest goals in the NHL, and you’ve got one heck of a hockey team. There is a reason the latest NHL odds have the Capitals as the current favorites to win the Stanley Cup. This is a deep, balanced team, and they’re going to keep that winning streak streak going on Thursday night in Montreal. Pick: Capitals 4, Canadiens 2
The rest of Thursday’s picks
New York Rangers 4, Colorado Avalanche 3
Carolina Hurricanes 3, New Jersey Devils 2
Chicago Blackhawks 4, Ottawa Senators 2
Detroit Red Wings 5, Arizona Coyotes 3
Nashville Predators 2, Florida Panthers 0
Minnesota Wild 3, Toronto Maple Leafs 1
Dallas Stars 5, Vancouver Canucks 4
Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals will keep winning against the Montreal Canadiens. (USATSI)
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