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The Washington Capitals are solid home favorites on Sunday afternoon, as they host the Philadelphia Flyers in a game that can be seen on NBC. The Flyers are trying to stay in playoff contention in a very crowded Metropolitan Division, as just six points separate seven of the eight teams. The one team that has looked pretty good in the division is Washington, and they are in first place. Let’s look at Sunday’s contest and NHL picks.
Don't miss the ice action from Capital One Arena at 12:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, January 21, 2018. Catch every moment of the game live on NBC.
We'll have NHL odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the NHL Sunday schedule.
Odds Analysis
The Flyers are not in a good spot for this game on Sunday, as this will be their third game in four days, and they are playing with no rest, as they were home against New Jersey on Saturday. The Flyers have played well enough of late to stay in the mix in the Metropolitan Division, but Philadelphia still has issues. They average 2.9 goals per game and give up 2.9 per contest. When they get really good goaltending from Brian Elliott they have a chance to win, but if he struggles they have very little chance. Penalty killing has been a major problem for the Flyers this season, as they are 29th in the league. Good teams don’t struggle that much on special teams, so it is hard to consider the Flyers more than an average team right now.
Philadelphia is 9-12 on the road this season, with 11 games going over the total, 9 going under, with one push.
The Capitals are also in a 3-in-4 situation on Sunday, but they have two advantages. First, this game is at home, and second they had Saturday off, while the Flyers had to play. The Capitals also had five days off before the three games in four days situation.
Washington was 18-6 in their first 24 home games, with 11 games going over the total and 13 going under. They are scoring 3 goals per game and giving up about 2.8 per contest.
Special Teams
Neither of these teams has been that good on special teams this season. I noted earlier just how bad the Flyers are in terms of penalty killing. They have been decent on the power play at 21.4%, which is 8th in the league. The Capitals are just 14th on the power play at 19.6% and they are not that much better than the Flyers in terms of penalty killing at just over 79%, 22nd in the league.
Key Stat
The Capitals have won 6 of the last 10 in this series, but they were blown out in Philadelphia earlier this season, losing 8-2. That win by Philly snapped a three-game winning streak in the series for the Capitals. Four of the last ten meetings have gone under the total, with just two going over, with four pushes. Washington has won five of the last six at home in this series, with three unders and three pushes.
Free NHL Picks
There are a number of factors working against the Flyers in this game. First, they had to play on Saturday, while the Capitals were off. Second, the Flyers are not that good on the road, while the Capitals are very good at home. Third, the Capitals are simply the better team. It also doesn’t hurt that the Capitals may want a little revenge for the beating they took at the hands of the Flyers earlier this season and the Flyers have lost six of their last ten playing with no rest. I will lay the price and take the Capitals to win this game at home on Sunday afternoon.
NHL Odds: Capitals 4, Flyers 1
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