A rare inter-conference duel will be in the works on Monday as the Washington Capitals battle things out with the San Jose Sharks. Let's check out our NHL odds series where our Capitals-Sharks prediction and pick will be made.

As it stands, the Capitals have conducted their season thus far rather well en route to a 10-5-2 record. They had a five-game winning streak that was ultimately halted in the 5-0 shutout loss at the hands of the Edmonton Oilers on Friday. Nevertheless, there is a lot of positive momentum surrounding Washington and they will have an excellent chance to start another winning streak against the Sharks.

Despite coming away victorious in a shootout win against the Vancouver Canucks last time out on the ice, the Sharks are barely keeping their heads above water at 4-15-2, losing six of their last eight games overall. Still, give credit to San Jose for continuing to fight hard night in and night out. Will the Sharks do enough on the ice to capture back-to-back wins for only the second time all season?

Here are the NHL Odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

NHL Odds: Capitals-Sharks Odds

Washington Capitals: -1.5 (+106)

San Jose Sharks: +1.5 (-128)

Over: 5.5 (-120)

Under: 5.5 (-102)

How to Watch Capitals vs. Sharks

Time: 10:30 ET/7:30 PT

TV: ESPN+

Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)

Why The Capitals Will Cover The Spread/Win

Yes, the Capitals should hold plenty of advantages on paper when they face off with the Sharks on Monday evening. But Washington still have to come out and put in the work if they want to avoid a massive letdown especially considering how well they gave played of late.

To begin, the one facet of the game that the ‘Caps need to take advantage of will fall in the form of a suffocating defense that is eager to get back on track. Despite surrendering five goals in their shutout loss to the Oilers, the Capitals had only allowed nine goals total during their five-game winning streak.

Even more so, Washington has been a thorn in San Jose's side over the years as they have ben triumphant in six straight games over the Sharks. Believe it or not, but they are also undefeated in five-straight visits to San Jose. If past history ends up rearing its head, then the Capitals may find themselves in pretty good shape.

Clearly, the biggest difference-maker in this one will fall on the shoulders of a power-play unit that has been in a long scoring drought. Over the course of their last 50 extra-man opportunities, the ‘Caps have only scored in a total of three of those. Simply put, this cannot continue to be the case or else it will surely come back to bite them.

Why The Sharks Will Cover The Spread/Win

While the Vegas Golden Knights were stealing every headline in hockey on their way to a historic 11-0-1 start, the San Jose Sharks were doing quite the opposite losing their first ten games of the year and possessing little to zero hope on the season outlook.

However, since then, the Sharks have battled their way back with a 4-5-1 mark in their last ten games played. Although they are far from removing themselves in the basement of the NHL, San Jose will take any positivity they can get at this moment of time.

In order to treat their home fans with a rare cover against the spread and maybe even a win, capitalizing on every single chance they get on the offensive side of the ice will be needed especially considering how much of a struggle it has been offensively. Overall, this scoring offense is only putting up 1.62 goals per contest which is the fewest mark in the league by a wide margin.

Because of their inability to find the back of the net at full strength, could converting on the power-play be the best recipe for success. Indeed, their extra-man opportunities haven't dazzled nor impressed whatsoever either, but they did happen to go 1-1 on their lone chance on the power-play.

Without a doubt, this may be San Jose's saving grace since the Sharks enter this game with a talent disadvantage on the ice.

Final Capitals-Sharks Prediction & Pick

The Capitals enter this contest with recent domination versus the Sharks in while it's San Jose that could use a much-needed rejuvenation with a much-needed home victory.

At the end of the day, it is hard to trust the Sharks in any capacity based on how their season has played out thus far. If you are looking to put some cash in your pocket on this Monday, don't be a fool and instead take the Capitals to get the job done out on the west coast.

Final Capitals-Sharks Prediction & Pick: Capitals -1.5 (+106)