Premium NHL Pick : December 7 #1

Washington Capitals @ Tampa Bay Lightning:

Alexander Ovechkin is returning for tonight's game and the Capitals will go to Tampa Bay and try to make it six wins a row. They destroyed the Philadelphia Flyers 8-2 on Saturday when the Flyers welcomed their new coach Laviolette. 8 goals on 30 shots without their top scorer Ovechkin showed what this team is capable of even without their star player.

Ovechkin is returning tonight but wingers Matt Bradley, Laing, Knuble, center Boyd Gordon and defender Morrisonn are not.

Tampa Bay are a healthy team but they had only one win in the last five games and they went 3-5-2 in their last 10 games. They are 7-2-3 on home ice this season and before the latest in over the Islanders on Saturday, last time they played at St. Pete Times Forum, they were blanked by the Colorado Avalanche with a score of 3-0. Their home record is terrible against the Capitals. Tampa Bay is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Washington.

They scored three powerplay goals in the last two games but before that they couldn't score a powerplay goal in 13 tries. They are very inconsistent. Except the latest game against the Islanders when they killed of every Isles powerplay, their penalty killing is below league average at 76.7%. And tonight they will play Washington Capitals that leads the league on the power play at 24.6%. Just like Caps coach is saying "“I think our power play, when it's clicking, is very good. In the last couple games, it's been clicking really good.”

Caps are 9-3-3 on road this season.

Lightning did not play too bad in New Jersey when their game tying goal late in third was canceled out by a Devils goal only 38 seconds remaining and then they returned home and shut out the Islanders. But Ovechkin-Backstrom-Semin line is too good for them to handle. I believe the Caps will continue their winning streak tonight.

PREMIUM NHL PICK: WASHINGTON CAPITALS TO WIN [Moneyline]

1.70@ Bodog

good luck

Outcome: