The Washington Capitals host the New York Rangers in a critical Game 3 in the first round of the NHL playoffs on Friday at Capital One Arena. The Rangers won the first two NHL games in the series, thoroughly outplaying the Capitals in both, and have a chance to take a stranglehold on the series with a road victory in Game 3.
Rangers vs Capitals Picks

- Pick 1: Rangers -170
- Pick 2: Over 5.5 (-110)
Igor Shesterkin (2.58 GAA, .912 save percentage) is likely to start in goal for the Rangers Capitals picks and Charlie Lindgren (2.67 GAA, .911 save percentage) is expected to start in goal for Washington Capitals. Let’s take a look at the Rangers vs Capitals predictions.
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New York Rangers vs Washington Capitals Odds
The Rangers, despite playing on the road, are -170 moneyline favorites, with the Rangers betting odds for the puck line at -1.5 (+150). The Capitals have +145 moneyline odds and NHL Vegas odds of +1.5 (-180) for the puck line. The total for the Rangers vs Capitals predictions is 5.5.
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New York Rangers vs Washington Capitals Information
New York Rangers vs Washington Capitals
Location of the game: Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C.
Date & Time: Friday, April 26 at 7 p.m. ET
Where to Watch: ESPN and Sportsnet (Canada)
New York Rangers vs Washington Capitals Betting Preview
Rangers Dominating as Expected
New York was the best team in the regular season NHL standings, winning the President’s Trophy with a 55-23-4 record for 114 points. They were 7-3-0 in their last 10 NHL games to finish the regular season and have outscored the Capitals 8-4 through the first two games of the series. They outshot Washington 31-21 in Game 1 and 28-25 in Game 2.
Mika Zibanejad, who was second in NHL player stats for the Rangers in the regular season, has had a strong start in the series with three points (1 goal, 2 assists). Vincent Trochek and Alexis Lafreniere also have three points. New York was seventh among NHL teams in both goals for (3.39) and against (2.76) during the regular season. They were also third in both power play (26.4 percent) and penalty kill (84.5).
The Rangers are among the leading NHL picks to win the Stanley Cup and have won five consecutive playoff games against the Capitals. However, they’re 1-2 in their last three playoff games in Washington.
Capitals Hoping to Salvage Series
The Capitals had a surprisingly decent season, exceeding all expectations and making the NHL playoffs. Yet, they finished the year with a goal differential of -38, which is the worst goal differential for a playoff team in NHL history. They’ve done well to keep the Rangers offense in check somewhat through two Games, but appear to be hanging on for dear life. They’ll need an inspired effort in Game 3 to make this a series.
That could be difficult considering how poorly Alex Ovechkin has played through the first two games of the series. He has yet to record a point and has looked slow and sluggish at times. Washington was 28th in NHL stats for goals (2.63) and 30th for shots (26.5) during the regular season. They won three games in a row to end the year and qualify for the playoffs.
Washington has several players on the NHL injury report, including defensemen Ethan Bear, Rasmus Sandin, and Nick Jensen. Sonny Milano is also day-to-day with an undisclosed injury.
New York Rangers vs Washington Capitals Betting Picks
Washington should come out strong, but the Rangers are too deep up front and have a much better defense than the Capitals. New York also had the fifth-best record on the road during the regular season.
- Pick 1: Rangers -170
- Pick 2: Over 5.5 (-110)
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