Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Washington Capitals: Game 7 prediction
By Adam Stocker
After winning back to back games, the Washington Capitals forced game 7 at home against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
After losing game 4 to the Pittsburgh Penguins, many people wrote off the Washington Capitals. The Capitals were the best team in the NHL during the regular season but were down 3-1 in their series against the defending Stanley Cup champions. It looked like another premature playoff exit for Alexander Ovechkin and the Capitals. However, the Capitals won Game 5, 4-2 and crushed the Penguins 5-2 in Game 6 in Pittsburgh.
Washington’s Verizon Center will be rocking on Wednesday with the chance to eliminate its hated rival. Alexander Burakovsky has elevated his play over the past two games. The Austrian winger has scored three goals and added an assist. Evgeny Kuznetsov and Nicklas Backstrom have been excellent in the series. Both Kuznetsov and Backstrom have four goals and three assists through six games.
Pittsburgh needs goalie Marc-Andre Fleury to play significantly better in Game 7. Over the past two games, Fleury has allowed nine goals and has just an 84.4 save percentage. In Pittsburgh’s three wins, Fleury has posted at least a 94.3 save percentage. In the losses, Fleury best save percentage came in game 3 when he posted a 90.9 save percentage.
Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Phil Kessel and Jake Guentzel have been fantastic offensively in the playoffs. Guentzel leads the NHL in goals, while Malkin is the leader in points. However, the Penguins are getting very little from their bottom two lines. If the Pens don’t get any offensively production from their bottom six forwards they will lose Game 7.
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Washington will benefit from playing at home and get off to a fast start. Kuznetsov and Backstrom will continue their hot streak and produce offensively for Washington. Pittsburgh will lean heavily on Crosby, Malkin, Kessel and Guentzel. In the third period, Ovechkin will win it for the Capitals.
Prediction: Washington Capitals 5 – Pittsburgh Penguins 3