Ottawa Senators vs Washington Capitals Prediction: We see a different picture

Prediction for the NHL Ottawa Senators vs Washington Capitals match which will take place on October 19th. Who will turn out to be stronger? Check the team conditions! Several betting options are available.

Ottawa is a team expected to make a significant breakthrough this season. The Senators have been passing by the Cup battles in recent years, but their play has improved in the regular season, and they are not far from the playoffs. They need to finish in the top 8 of the Eastern Conference. Ottawa has already played three games this season, starting with a 5:3 loss to Carolina, followed by 5:2 wins over Philadelphia and Tampa Bay.

Washington, on the other hand, has regressed in recent years. After winning the Stanley Cup, the Capitals went down. Their key players are not getting younger, but they are still on contracts, so the management cannot strengthen the roster with quality recruits. All of this has led to Washington missing out on Cup competition last season, and it will be even more challenging for them now that all of their leaders are a year older. Spencer Carbery's wards started a slow start in the regular season, losing 4:0 to Pittsburgh, but bounced back to beat Calgary 3:2 the day before.

In recent years, the Ottawa-Washington matchup has been very predictable, with the Capitals consistently winning games, including a streak of ten wins. Things began to change last year when the Senators broke their losing streak and won three times in the previous four meetings. In the off-season, the home team has gotten stronger and more experienced, while the visitors have only gotten older, and it will be highly problematic for them to compete with a more young and hungry team.

We have already noted that in recent years, the fight between Ottawa and Washington was predictable, and not only in terms of victories of the Сapital, but the performance was always solid. Now, we see a different picture. In the five previous meetings, the opponents have combined to suffer only 26 scored pucks for two (an average of 5.20 per game) - a very modest result by NHL standards.