The Washington Capitals are back on home ice when they take on the Detroit Red Wings tonight at 7 p.m. from Capital One Arena on Monumental Sports Network. You can also listen to the game on 106.7 The Fan and Caps Radio 24/7.
Tonight's betting odds per Caesars have the Capitals as 1.5 goal favorites on home ice with -190 moneyline odds. The Red Wings are the underdog at +158. Tonight's over/under is set at 6.0 goals.
#3 Control the tempo
The last time the Capitals faced the Red Wings it was Rock the Red Era Night at Capital One Arena on March 7. In that contest the Caps responded in the third period after trailing 2-1. They got four unanswered goals including two shorthanded goals.
The shorthanders came from Aliaksei Protas and Tom Wilson. Protas had another goal in the period at full strength as did defenseman Jakob Chychrun. Taylor Raddysh had the early first period goal. Logan Thompson got the win in net with 17 saves.
Tonight's meeting is the third and final meeting between the teams this season. Washington dropped the first one in Detroit in the final game of the 2024 portion of the season in late December.
#2 Play spoiler to Detroit's season
Usually we use this key for a team not being in the playoffs. But with one month to go until the big dance begins Washington could very well play spoiler on Detorit's playoff chances.
The Red Wings head into this game with a 32-29-6 record which is good for 70 points. They are on the outside looking in as far as the wild card goes as they're just two points behind the New York Rangers for that second and final spot.
For those keeping score the Caps are 44-15-8 which is good for 96 points and second place in the League just two points behind the Winnipeg Jets.
#1 Treat this game like a playoff game
The final key is to treat this contest like a playoff game. With the big dance starting in about a month from now and where the Red Wings are in the standings there's no way the Caps should take this game lightly. This could be their first round opponent.
If the Capitals were to face the Red Wings in the first round it would be the first time they met in the postseason since the 1998 Stanley Cup Final when Detroit played in the Western Conference and were a dynasty. Even though the Caps fell short in that finals, it helped put hockey in D.C. on the map.