Boston Bruins vs. Washington Capitals Game 1 Prediction, NHL Odds
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Jeremy Perry
If the Boston Bruins have any hope of advancing to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, they’ll need to figure out how to win at Capital One Arena. They’ll get their first crack at turning around their dismal record in the U.S. capital Saturday night as they visit a Washington Capitals team that finished the season on a 7-2-1 run. The winner of this matchup will face either the Pittsburgh Penguins or the New York Islanders in the East Division final.
Bruins vs. Capitals Betting Analysis
The lower-seeded Bruins are comfortable favourites for Game 1, in what has to be a mild surprise to Capitals fans and bettors. The teams split their eight regular-season meetings, though the Bruins finished with more points thanks to a pair of extra-time losses. That said, Boston has just three victories in its previous 14 visits to Capital One Arena – and with the Capitals owning home-ice advantage, the B’s will need to improve on that mark.
Bettors are putting their faith in the home team for Game 1, with 59 percent taking the Capitals at +110. And there’s a similar split for the total, with 63 percent of Sports Interaction customers leaning toward the O5.5 at +102 (with the U5.5 at an eye-opening -123). Six of their eight head-to-head meetings during the regular season produced six or more goals, though they finished their series with a 2-1 Washington victory in Tuesday’s regular-season finale.
Boston Bruins
The Bruins ended the regular season with a much-needed flourish, going 6-2-1 SU over their final nine games while leaning on the kind of defence and goaltending they’ll need to make a deep playoff run. Boston has surrendered just 17 goals over its previous 10 games and enters the postseason having allowed just 2.39 goals per game during the season, fourth-fewest in the NHL. Boston gave up an average of three goals in eight meetings with Washington.
Washington Capitals
A big part of the Capitals’ hopes of reaching Round 2 of the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since winning it all in 2018 will center once again around the goal-scoring prowess of Alex Ovechkin. And that could be a problem for Washington, with Ovechkin considered a game-time decision for Game 1 as he battles a lower-body injury. Ovechkin struggled mightily against Boston this season, scoring just two goals with a minus-13 rating in eight games.
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