The Florida Panthers and the Washington Capitals meet Saturday in NHL action from the Capital One Arena. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Florida Panthers vs. Washington Capitals prediction.
Matchup History
The Washington Capitals have won both meetings so far this season with a 4-1 win in Florida back on November 25th, 2024, before picking up back-to-back wins in this head-to-head matchup with a 6-3 win over Florida in Washington back on February 4th, 2025.
Florida Panthers Recap
The Florida Panthers come into this game looking to add on to their 1-0 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets in overtime last time out to improve to 42-24-3 on the year. After this game, Florida will head home for a game against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Panthers Looking To Build Momentum
Sam Reinhart has a team-high 73 points including 33 goals and 40 assists while Sam Bennett has 45 points with 22 goals and 23 assists and Anton Lundell has 41 points of his own with 15 goals and 26 assists. Aleksander Barkov also has 63 points with 44 assists of his own while Carter Verhaeghe has 46 points with 17 goals and 29 assists and Matthew Tkachuk has 57 points with 22 goals and 35 assists. Sergei Bobrovsky is 29-15-2 with a 2.45 GAA and a .908 save percentage in goal for Florida this season.
Why the Florida Panthers will win
- The Panthers have won seven of their last eight games against opponents on a winning streak.
- The Capitals have lost three of their last four night games at Capital One Arena following a home win.
- The Panthers have covered the puck line in each of their last five games against the Capitals following a road win.
- The Capitals have failed to cover the puck line in each of their last four night games at Capital One Arena following a home win.
Florida Panthers Player Prop Facts
- Sam Reinhart has scored the last goal in three of the Panthers’ last four games at Capital One Arena.
- Aleksander Barkov has recorded at least one point in each of his last 10 appearances in night games at Capital One Arena.
- Aaron Ekblad has recorded at least one assist in each of his last six appearances after playing less than 20 minutes in the Panthers’ last game.
- Matthew Tkachuk has scored at least one goal in each of his last six appearances.
- Aleksander Barkov ranks T1st in the league for shootout goals (3) this season.
Washington Capitals Recap
The Washington Capitals come into this game looking to add on to their 3-2 win over Philadelphia at home last time out to sit at 46-15-8 so far this season. After this game, the Capitals will head on the road for a game against the Winnipeg Jets.
Capitals Win Three Straight & 8 Of Last 9
Dylan Strome leads the Capitals with 67 points including 22 goals and a team-high 45 assists while Alex Ovechkin has 57 points with 35 goals and 22 assists and Connor McMichael’s added 52 points with 24 goals and 28 assists. Aliaksei Protas has 62 points with 29 goals and 33 assists while Tom Wilson has 57 points and John Carlson has 45 points with Wilson logging 30 goals and 27 assists and Carlson adding 41 assists. Pierre-Luc Dubois also has 60 points with 42 assists of his own. Jakob Chychrun has 43 points with 18 goals and 25 assists as well on the year. In goal for Washington, Logan Thompson has gone 30-4-5 with a 2.29 GAA and a .917 save percentage while Charlie Lindgren is 16-11-3 with a 2.63 GAA and a .901 save percentage this season.
Why the Washington Capitals will win
- The Capitals have won each of their last seven night games against Eastern Conference opponents.
- The Panthers have lost five of their last six games following an overtime win.
- The home team has covered the puck line in each of the Panthers’ last seven games.
- The Panthers have failed to cover the puck line in each of their last six road games against Eastern Conference opponents.
Washington Capitals Player Prop Facts
- Tom Wilson has scored a goal in four of the Capitals’ last five games against Eastern Conference opponents.
- Aliaksei Protas has recorded at least one assist in each of the Capitals’ last five home games.
- Aliaksei Protas has recorded at least one point in each of the Capitals’ last five home games.
- Aliaksei Protas ranks 1st in the league for Plus/Minus (+43) this season.
Total Goals Facts
- Eight of the Panthers’ last nine games have gone UNDER the total goals line.
- Seven of the Capitals’ last eight games against the Panthers following a home win have gone OVER the total goals line.
Florida Panthers vs. Washington Capitals Prediction
I’m on the Capitals here. It truly feels like a coin flip between these two teams, but I want the team in better form in my back pocket, and that’s the Washington Capitals. The Panthers won’t continue to struggle like this, but this Capitals team is just in better form and has been arguably one of the most consistent teams in the NHL to back, home or away. Give me Washington in this one.