Capitals Still Listed as Favorites in Series vs Hurricanes After Carolina Evens Series
- The Carolina Hurricanes and Washington Capitals are tied 2-2 in their first round series
- After losing the first two games the Hurricanes have outscored the Capitals 7-1 in the past 2 games to even the series
- See the updated odds to win the series
The series between Carolina and Washington is now a best of three.
The odds moved in the Capitals favor after they opened the series with two wins but after a solid response from Carolina the odds have returned to where they were at the beginning of the series.
Hurricanes vs Capitals Series Price
| Team | Series Price |
|---|---|
| Washington Capitals | -140 |
| Carolina Hurricanes | +120 |
*Odds taken April 19
It’s tough to imagine the defending Stanley Cup Champions falling in the first round to a team that hasn’t had a sniff of success in years. But after watching the last two games it’s clear the value in this best lies with the Hurricanes.
The fastest playoff goal scored in franchise history ? pic.twitter.com/RkWzP3LvWd
— Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) April 19, 2019
Momentum on the Hurricanes’ Side
After winning two straight to even the series, there is serious momentum in Canes Country.
They have looked up to the task in the last two games, winning both by a combined score of 7-1. In Game 4 Warren Foegele opened the scoring only 17 seconds into the game.
Carolina hasn’t used the back door to win these games. They came at Washington and came at them hard.
The Capitals only goal over the two-game stretch came on a power play where a Hurricanes penalty-killer had broken his stick and effectively turned it into a 5-on-3.
Alexander Ovechkin and Andrei Svechnikov got in a pretty nasty fight on the ice
? @NBCSCapitals pic.twitter.com/UwMpzcWOt9
— SB Nation (@SBNation) April 16, 2019
It’s been sustained success that has many in the hockey world believing this is more than just a competitive series and actually a strong possibility of an upset coming through.
It’s a stark change from the beginning of the series where it appeared the Capitals had too much… knockout power.
Oshie Injury Big Problem For Capitals
For a team that has struggled to create anything on offense the last two games, losing TJ Oshie to injury was the exact opposite of what they needed to have happen.
The team announced Oshie will be out “quite some time” after being injured on this hit last night.
Warren Foegele injured TJ Oshie with a hard shove in the back and was only given a two-minute minor penalty: https://t.co/AjqT7WUDIS pic.twitter.com/fvxy7GPeSm
— Deadspin (@Deadspin) April 19, 2019
It’s one more blow to a team that seems to be teetering on the edge of a cliff right now. It’s easy to assume the Capitals will snap out of this funk and return to their championship winning ways, but it’s starting to look less and less likely.
Expect Underdog Trend to Continue
One other thing to consider when trying to muster up the courage to take the value and bet on the underdog, look at the rest of the playoff so far.
The New York Islanders swept the Pittsburgh Penguins; the Columbus Blue Jackets shocked the hockey world and did the same to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Vegas and St. Louis appear poised to join them in the second round as well.
Unlikely results have dominated the NHL playoffs so far and this would just be another instance. Bet the Hurricanes and be on the right side of another great story.
PICK: CAROLINA HURRICANES (+120)
Ryan has been working at TSN for over eleven years, and is now a lead writer and content producer at That's Hockey. Over the years, he's launched and hosted TSN's first NCAAF podcast, The College Football Show, and been featured on the likes of TSN 1050, Sportscentre, and That's Hockey 2Nite.
