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Andrew Rogers
Capitals vs. Golden Knights Prediction: Game 5 Stanley Cup Final
The Vegas Golden Knights are one loss away from seeing their incredible inaugural season come to an end – but oddsmakers are banking on the expansion darlings extending the Stanley Cup final at least one more game as they host the Washington Capitals in Game 5 on Thursday night. Vegas won the opening game of the best-of-seven but has lost three in a row since, putting the Capitals on the brink of their first Stanley Cup title in franchise history.
Capitals vs. Golden Knights Stanley Cup Final Odds
The Golden Knights are heavy favourites at home in this NHL matchup, as they should be; they’ve won 16 of their last 18 games at T-Mobile Arena against teams with winning road records, and have lost just 13 games there all season. They’ve also been a strong bounce-back team, winning six of their previous seven games after allowing five or more goals in their prior outing. But the Capitals are an imposing team away from Washington, winning 16 of their past 21 road contests.
There isn’t much to go on from a totals perspective, with the teams going over twice and under twice through the first four games of the series. Washington is 2-5-2 O/U in its last nine playoff games overall, but has eight overs and two pushes in its last 13 games after scoring five or more goals last time out. Vegas is 5-2 O/U in its past seven home games, but has posted seven unders in its last 10 encounters with Eastern Conference opponents.
Washington Capitals
With the Capitals just a win away from sipping from the fanciest mug in hockey, the focus now shifts to Conn Smythe Trophy odds – and there are just two Washington players in the running in the eyes of oddsmakers. Legendary sniper Alex Ovechkin leads the way at -130, as he enters Thursday tied for first among playoff participants in goals (14) and second in points (26). Evgeny Kuznetsov is close behind at +100; he’s the leading playoff scorer to date with 31 points.
Vegas Golden Knights
Each of the last 31 teams to fall behind 3-1 in the final have failed to rally – but do you really want to count out a team that didn’t even have a roster one year ago at this time? The Golden Knights are +550 to come back to win the Stanley Cup, while their top Conn Smythe candidate – netminder Marc-Andre Fleury – was once the favourite but has dipped to +550. If he can extend the series to seven games, he might win the award regardless of the Game 7 outcome.
