Washington Capitals vs Chicago Blackhawks: Game preview, predictions, and odds

The Washington Capitals are on the road to play the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday, Dec. 17, at 8:30 p.m. EST.

Washington (21-7-2) is coming off a 3-1 loss to Dallas on Monday. Chicago (10-19-2) is coming off a 5-3 win over the New York Islanders on Sunday.

Capitals vs Blackhawks: Head-to-head & key stats

Washington is 49-43-11-3 all-time against Chicago
The Capitals are averaging 3.86 goals per game
The Blackhawks are 5-8 at home
Washington is allowing 2.66 goals per game
Chicago is averaging 2.48 goals per game
The Capitals are 12-3 on the road
The Blackhawks are allowing 3.19 goals per game

Washington Capitals vs Chicago Blackhawks: Preview

Washington is coming off a 3-1 loss to Dallas on Monday and now goes on the road to play Chicago in the second game of a back-to-back. The Capitals are led by Dylan Strome who has 38 points, Connor McMichael has 27 points, Aliaksei Protas has 26 points,and Tom Wilson has 24 points.

The Capitals will start Logan Thompson who's 12-1-2 with a 2.45 GAA and a .913 SV%. In his career against Chicago, he's 4-0-1 with a 1.76 GAA and a .940 SV%.

The Blackhawks, meanwhile, pulled off an upset win over the Islanders on Sunday. Chicago will start Arvid Soderblom who's 3-7-1 with a 2.76 GAA and a .909 SV%. In his career against Washington, he's 0-1 with a 4.10 GAA and a .852 SV%.

Chicago is led by Connor Bedard who has 26 points, Ryan Donato has 17 points, Teuvo Teravainen has 16 points and Alex Vlasic has 16 points.

Capitals vs Blackhawks: Odds & Prediction

Washington is a -185 favorite, while Chicago is a +154 underdog, the over/under is set at 6 goals.

The Capitals played Dallas tough on Monday night and should be able to get a big win here. Thompson has been stellar this season as he's been one of the best goalies in the NHL.

Chicago, meanwhile, struggles to keep the puck out of its net and plays one of the top offensive teams in the NHL.

Washington should get out to an early lead, as the Capitals' offensive is legit. Thompson should also limit the Blackhawks' struggling offense to get a big road win.

Prediction: Capitals 3, Blackhawks 1.

Capitals vs Blackhawks: Betting Tips

Tip 1: Washington ML (-185)

Tip 2: Under 6 goals (-122)

Tip 3: Connor Bedard 3+ shots on goal (+100)

About the author

Cole is an NHL, NFL and College Sports reporter at Sportskeeda with over 7 years of experience writing for publications like CBC, USA Today, SMG, BJPENN, Sherdog and SB Nation.

An NHL fan his whole life, Cole played rep hockey in Canada from age 5 until 17 and grew up rooting for Martin St. Louis and the Tampa Bay Lightning. His all-time favorite players are Vincent Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos, while Jon Cooper is his favorite coach of all time.

Cole attended Sheridan College and received his journalism degree in 2019. After decades of watching and reporting, he considers his knowledge of sports as his primary strength. He ensures that the same story has been reported by at least two reputed reporters before creating it.

Cole enjoys playing golf and spending time with friends and family when not reporting breaking stories. His favorite sports moment is from the 2010 Olympics, when Sidney Crosby scored the golden goal in overtime to beat Team USA for the gold medal.

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Edited by Rajdeep Barman

Washington Capitals vs Chicago Blackhawks: Game preview, predictions, and odds | December 17, 2024

Capitals vs Blackhawks: Head-to-head & key stats

Washington Capitals vs Chicago Blackhawks: Preview

Capitals vs Blackhawks: Odds & Prediction

Capitals vs Blackhawks: Betting Tips