Washington Capitals vs. New York Rangers Game 2 Prediction, Odds and Key Players

In game one between the Washington Capitals and New York Rangers, the Rangers dominated the scoring and the puck at five-on-five. This was to be expected, considering the Rangers won the Eastern Conference while the Capitals snuck into the last playoff spot.

Tonight, these two teams will suit up for the second game of this series at Madison Square Garden. With the Rangers falling short of expectations last year in the playoffs, it should be safe to assume we will get another strong effort out of the Rangers tonight against this Capitals team that has struggled to find success at the Garden.

Here is our full betting preview for Game 2 of the NHL Playoffs between the Capitals and Rangers.

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Washington Capitals vs. New York Rangers Odds, Puckline and Total

Washington Capitals vs. New York Rangers Betting Trends

• Rangers are 6-1 in their last five games at home vs. the Capitals.
• Rangers are 4-2 in their last six games against the Capitals.
• The total has gone over in 11 of the last 15 games the Rangers have played vs. Eastern Conference opponents, while the Capitals have gone under in eight of their last 12 against the East.
• Capitals are 2-5 in their last seven games on the road.
• Rangers are 11-3 on home ice this season when playing a divisional opponent.

Washington Capitals vs. New York Rangers Game 2 How to Watch

• Date: Tuesday, April 22nd
• Puck Drop: 7:00 PM EST
• Venue: Madison Square Garden
• How to Watch: TVA Sports, Sportsnet
• Series Score: 1-0 New York Rangers
• New York Rangers Record: 55-26-4
• Washington Capitals Record: 40-31-11

Washington Capitals vs. New York Rangers Key Players to Watch

Washington Capitals

Alex Ovechkin: Ovechkin is one of the best goal-scorers of all time. However, the Rangers have been able to shut him down over the last two years, holding him to just one goal and three total points in the six games these two have played since the start of the 2022 season. If the Capitals want to have any chance of winning this series, their future hall of famer has to find a way to have some success against Igor Shesterkin and the Rangers.

New York Rangers

Artemi Panarin: Panarin was all over the ice in game one of this series. He had seven shots on 10 attempts and found the back of the net once. However, most of the offensive workload was carried by the Ranger's depth players in the game of this series. In game two, the Rangers superstars will likely perform offensively better. I would not be shocked to see Panarin score again, as he has goals in four straight games and seven of his last 10.

Washington Capitals vs. New York Rangers Prediction and Pick

This series between the Capitals and Rangers is your typical No.1 seed versus No.8 seed first-round playoff matchup. The Rangers are better in almost every facet of the game when you compare them to the Washington Capitals, and the Rangers demonstrated that in game one of the playoffs.

The biggest difference is the New York Rangers' goaltending. Over the last 25 games of the regular season, Igor Shesterkin ranked fourth among goalies in goals saved above expected and continued his hot streak in game one of this series, saving 1.25 goals above expected.

With the Rangers' moneyline price hovering around -280, it is hard to think there is any value left in taking the Rangers on the moneyline or puckline and it is highly possible that the Capitals could produce their best effort of the season to try and avoid going down 2-0 in the series.

That being said, I am going to pivot to a player prop market that correlates to the Rangers winning but also the Capitals putting forth a good effort.

In game one of this series, the Rangers held the Capitals to just 21 shots on goal, despite allowing 54 shot attempts for the game. Throughout the regular season, the Rangers allowed 29.91 shots on goal per game while being a middle-of-the-road shot-blocking team.

The Capitals only averaged 24.16 shots per game throughout the regular season. Still, after only getting 39% of their shot attempts on the net in game one and dealing with Igor Shesterkin, it would not be shocking to see the Capitals come out with a shoot-first mentality tonight (via NaturalStatTrick).

This led me to Igor Shesterkin's over 23.5 saves, which is priced at -120. Shesterkin has covered this line in seven of his last 10 games and four of his last five on home ice. Even though the Capitals only managed 21 shots in the first game of this playoff series, Shesterkin has made 24 or more saves in six of his last eight starts against the Capitals.

I have Shesterkin making 28 saves tonight, this projection may be high, but the Capitals should come up with a better effort than they had in game one here tonight.

Best Bet: Igor Shesterkin Over 23.5 Saves (-120)

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.