The Vegas Golden Knights begin an Eastern Conference road trip with a showdown against the Washington Capitals on Monday night. This is a rematch of the 2018 Stanley Cup finals and while these teams have only faced off four times since then, there should still be plenty of aggression in this one.
Oddsmakers are expecting a close game with NHL betting lines opening with the Caps as slim -125 home favorites. Here are our best free NHL betting picks and predictions for Golden Knights vs. Capitals on Monday, January 24, with the puck dropping at 7 p.m. ET.
Golden Knights vs Capitals odds
Odds via the Covers Line, an average comprised of odds from multiple sportsbooks.
The Capitals opened as -125 home favorites with the Over/Under at 6. Early money has come in on Washington, shifting the line to -130. These teams haven't played against each other since February of 2020 when the Knights won 3-2 as -131 home favorites.
Use the live odds widget above to track any future line movements right until puck drop and be sure to check out the full NHL odds before betting to ensure you get the best number.
Golden Knights vs Capitals predictions
Predictions made on 1/24/2022 at 10:30 a.m. ET.
Click on each prediction to jump to the full analysis.
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Golden Knights vs Capitals game info
• Location: Capital One Arena, Washington, DC
• Date: Monday, January 24, 2022
• Puck drop: 7:00 p.m. ET
• TV: NBCS-DC, SportsNet Rocky Mountain
Golden Knights vs Capitals betting preview
Key injuries
Golden Knights: Max Pacioretty LW (Out), Zach Whitecloud D (Out), Alec Martinez D (Out), Mark Stone RW (Out), Nicolas Hague D (Out), Laurent Brossoit G (Questionable), Jack Eichel C (Out), Adam Brooks C (Out).
Capitals: Nick Jensen D (Questionable), T.J. Oshie RW (Out), John Carlson D (Out), Anthony Mantha RW (Out).
Find our latest NHL injury reports.
Golden Knights vs Capitals head-to-head record since 2018-19
Golden Knights: 2-2, 12 goals for.
Capitals: 2-2, 15 goals for.
Betting trend to know
The Golden Knights are 6-0 in their last 6 road games. Find more NHL betting trends for Golden Knights vs. Capitals.
Golden Knights vs Capitals picks and predictions
Our predictions are compiled from the analysis of the spread and total and are indications of where we are leaning for this game.
Our best bet is the play that we like the most for this game, which we would actually put some of our bankroll behind.
Moneyline analysis
The Capitals are coming off a 3-2 overtime win against the Senators on Saturday and have split wins and losses over their last six games. The Golden Knights haven't played since a 4-3 overtime win against the Habs on Thursday and are 2-5 in their last seven games.
Washington is sixth in the Eastern Conference with a point percentage of .655 while the Knights are fifth in the West but have a slightly worse point percentage of .610.
The Knights have been dealing with a slew of injuries lately and while defenseman Shea Theodore and center Nicolas Roy recently returned to action, they simultaneously lost high-scoring forward Mark Stone while blueliner Zach Whitecloud is questionable with a back injury. That said, the Caps are also missing a couple of crucial cogs, including All-Star defenseman John Carlson.
Despite their injuries up front, the Knights remain one of the league's highest-scoring teams, ranking sixth in goals per 60 minutes (3.43). Unfortunately, they've taken a step back on the other end of the ice where they rank 28th in high danger chances allowed per 60 minutes while netminder Robin Lehner is having a down year. With Marc-Andre Fleury now in Chicago, Lehner has become the workhorse in Vegas but has gone a middling 16-11-1 with a 2.95 GAA, .903 save percentage, and a goals saved above average of minus-5.1.
The Caps have been relying on a goaltending platoon of Ilya Samsonov and Vitek Vanecek, who have each played 21 games this season. There isn't much separating the pair and while Vanecek (2.54 GAA, .909 SV%) has looked a bit sharper lately, he's also made three starts in a row so we could see Samsonov (2.77 GAA, .903 SV%) tonight.
All things considered, these teams are fairly similar. They have a few key injuries but strong depth helps offset the absences. They can each put the puck in the net but have gotten inconsistent goaltending. Both have also been brutal on faceoffs and while the Caps have been awful on the powerplay, the Knights have been nearly as poor on the penalty kill.
It's tough to find an edge in this one but with Vegas playing well on the road (6-0 in its last six away contests) and the Caps losing four in a row against teams with winning records, we'll lean towards the Knights at plus money.
Prediction: Golden Knights moneyline (+105)
Over/Under analysis
While we might be torn on our side bet, wagering on the Over/Under seems a bit more straightforward. In 5-on-5 play, the Knights and Caps rank fifth and sixth in the NHL, respectively, in GF/60.
Washington has a terrific top line with Evgeny Kuznetsov setting up ageless wonder Alex Ovechkin. No pun intended, but the Capitals do a great job of capitalizing on a modest amount of scoring chances. On the other hand, the Knights roll with multiple lines packing a scoring punch, and they get it done by controlling the puck and generating tons of shots on goal.
The goaltending for both sides has also been a mixed bag this season as has their play on the blueline. Lehner has a save percentage of just .887 in 12 starts since the beginning of December while Vanecek (at least three goals allowed in four of his last six starts) and Samsonov (.868 SV% in last six games) have been up-and-down as well.
Prediction: Over 6 (-115)
Best bet
As we mentioned in our Over/Under analysis, the Over seems like a pretty solid bet. The trends suggest that as well, with the Over cashing in five of the Capitals' last six games at home while the Knights are 10-2 O/U in their previous 12 contests on the road. Take the Over.
Pick: Over 6 (-115)
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