Washington Capitals at New York Islanders (+105, 5.5)
It only took the Washington Capitals about 65 games to realize they can’t win games on skill alone.
Washington has won three straight, allowing just five goals over that stretch, and sat four points clear of Winnipeg and Buffalo in the battle for eighth spot in the East ahead of Monday’s action.
"We're making smart plays and waiting for the other teams to make mistakes," defenseman Karl Alzner told reporters. "It's hard on the body, but it's really simple to do. We used to try to make nice one-on-one plays and we're just starting to figure out you can't do that because players are too good. It's just smart hockey."
No kidding. This has been the problem with the Capitals for the past couple of years, but maybe the prospect of missing the playoffs has snapped some sense into them.
That said, Alex Ovechkin hasn’t done anything to silence his critics. He has just two points in the last six games.
Pick: Capitals +++
New Jersey Devils at Philadelphia Flyers (-135, 5.5)
It’s like it's 2003 all over again for the New Jersey Devils.
Martin Brodeur has turned back the clock by stopping everything that comes his way and the Devils are supporting him with some great work in their own end and in the neutral zone. They have won four straight games and are rocketing up the Eastern Conference standings.
"That's unreal and just looking at the way he's played over the last little while - we haven't given up more than one goal in the last six games,” Zach Parise said of Brodeur. “So, our goaltending has been great. Marty's playing really well."
The major difference between this edition of the Devils and that of a decade ago is that they actually have some scoring punch now. Ilya Kovalchuk is on a tear and grinder David Clarkson is having a career year offensively.
This is the back end of a home-and-home after New Jersey came away with a 4-1 win over Philly on Sunday. The Flyers should have Ilya Bryzgalov back in the cage Tuesday and this will likely be a close-checking affair.
Pick: Under +++
It only took the Washington Capitals about 65 games to realize they can’t win games on skill alone.
Washington has won three straight, allowing just five goals over that stretch, and sat four points clear of Winnipeg and Buffalo in the battle for eighth spot in the East ahead of Monday’s action.
"We're making smart plays and waiting for the other teams to make mistakes," defenseman Karl Alzner told reporters. "It's hard on the body, but it's really simple to do. We used to try to make nice one-on-one plays and we're just starting to figure out you can't do that because players are too good. It's just smart hockey."
No kidding. This has been the problem with the Capitals for the past couple of years, but maybe the prospect of missing the playoffs has snapped some sense into them.
That said, Alex Ovechkin hasn’t done anything to silence his critics. He has just two points in the last six games.
Pick: Capitals +++
New Jersey Devils at Philadelphia Flyers (-135, 5.5)
It’s like it's 2003 all over again for the New Jersey Devils.
Martin Brodeur has turned back the clock by stopping everything that comes his way and the Devils are supporting him with some great work in their own end and in the neutral zone. They have won four straight games and are rocketing up the Eastern Conference standings.
"That's unreal and just looking at the way he's played over the last little while - we haven't given up more than one goal in the last six games,” Zach Parise said of Brodeur. “So, our goaltending has been great. Marty's playing really well."
The major difference between this edition of the Devils and that of a decade ago is that they actually have some scoring punch now. Ilya Kovalchuk is on a tear and grinder David Clarkson is having a career year offensively.
This is the back end of a home-and-home after New Jersey came away with a 4-1 win over Philly on Sunday. The Flyers should have Ilya Bryzgalov back in the cage Tuesday and this will likely be a close-checking affair.
Pick: Under +++
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