Ryan Hodges
The Capitals and Hurricanes head to Raleigh, North Carolina to continue their second-round series of the Stanley Cup playoffs. After narrowly splitting the first two games of this series, they each are going to be playing with plenty of urgency to take Game 3 in what is now a best of 5 with the Hurricanes having home-ice advantage. There is not much at all that separates these teams. They are playing great hockey and have made for exciting, nail-biting game finishes. Based on the season series and now playoff matchup, fans can expect more of the same. If you will be watching and want to have some action, here is a same-game parlay we like at +445 odds, along with some reasoning.
You can also find out our NHL picks for this matchup and all of the playoff action.
Hurricanes ML (-205)
Under 5.5 (-105)
Jackson Blake over 0.5 points (-120)
Capitals vs Hurricanes Same Game Parlay odds: +445
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Carolina Hurricanes ML over Washington Capitals (-205)
What looks to give the Hurricanes the edge in Game 3 is their home-ice advantage. Combining the regular season and playoffs, the Hurricanes are 34-9-1 at home, including 26-18 against the spread. While this is not a puck line pick, the record against the spread at home further illustrates their strength on home ice. Their 63 points on home ice were the 3rd best in the NHL among home teams. In 2 games against the Capitals played at the friendly confines during the regular season, the Hurricanes won both games by a combined score of 9-3. That is pure domination and a primary reason for the appeal on the Hurricanes money line in this one.
Recent form has not changed from Carolina’s regular season-long trends. They have won 5 out of their last 7 games, as well as 7 out of their last 8 played at home. Going back further, the Hurricanes have had the Capitals’ number over the long term as Carolina has won 5 out of the last 6 played at home against Washington. Despite splitting the first couple games of this series, the Hurricanes have taken a lot of the play to the Capitals. Carolina outshot Washington in both games by an average of 13 full shots per game. That could be even more lopsided considering the Capitals have blocked a whopping 65 shots in the first 2 games of this series. Home ice, as well as both long-term and recent trends bode better for the Hurricanes in this one.
Read our full analysis of Saturday’s 2-game Stanley Cup Playoff slate
Under 5.5 (-105)
With each of the first 2 games of this series being low scoring, the under has now hit in 5 out of last 7 games played for each team. That is 10 unders in their combined last 14 games played. Both the Capitals and Hurricanes finished in the top 10 in the NHL in goal prevention during the regular season. They have carried that team strength into the postseason. The Caps and Hurricanes have each allowed an average of 2.14 goals per game which is tied for the least goals allowed per game in these playoffs among the 16 postseason-eligible teams. The pure matchup of a couple of teams who are flexing elite goal prevention and riding unders trends indicate another low game total.
Goals have been difficult to come by in this series for both teams. That is not for any lack of offensive talent. During the regular season, the Capitals and Hurricanes ranked 2nd and 9th respectively in the NHL in goals scored per game. But in these playoffs, their strength of goal prevention has outweighed their strength of goal scoring which has resulted in low totals and thus, game total unders. The case is especially true head to head. These are a couple of very good, deep, experienced teams that have a very thin margin of error in their matchup. The under typically has a good chance when that is the case, and as much has been proven true in this series. Until or unless either team proves otherwise or reverses trends, the under has been the play on the total and looks to still be the case.
Jackson Blake over 0.5 points (-120)
Even if this is yet another low total, someone has to score. The Hurricanes have had a fairly deep and balanced attack in their 5 wins in 7 games played in this postseason. They have 9 total players with at least 4 points in the 7 games played. One such player that has made an impact for the Hurricanes is Jackson Blake. In 80 games played this season, the rookie, Blake, had a respectable 17 goals and 34 points, along with a +10 rating in an average of 13:51 of ice time per game. Although it is a small sample size, Blake has ticked up his production during the playoffs. His young career 82-game average is 0.41 points per game during the regular season, but that pace has increased to 0.57 points per game in the playoffs.
Jackson Blake has stepped up when his team needed him to during the most important time of the year. His strong play has earned him a spot on Carolina’s top line with Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov. He is also on the top power play with Aho, Svechnikov, Seth Jarvis, and Shayne Gostisbehere. Blake’s average ice time per game has also gone up from 13:51 during the regular season to now 20:08 during the playoffs. Clearly, head coach Rod Brind’Amour has trust in Blake and is leaning on him to continue to be a key player for the Hurricanes. Blake is in a great spot with great players and has as good of an opportunity as anyone on Carolina to continue to produce. This is a nice addition to a same-game parlay with some good value.
