It is a Friday night Metropolitan Division Battle as the Carolina Hurricanes visit the Washington Capitals. It is time to continue our NHL odds series with a Hurricanes-Capitals prediction, pick, and how-to-watch.

The Hurricanes enter the game sitting at 21-13-4 on the year and have now won five straight games. Last time out, they faced the New York Rangers. The Capitals scored just 1:49 into the game on the power play to take the lead. At the end of the first, Andrei Svechnikov scored on the power play to make it 2-0. In the second, Chris Kreider scored to make it a one-goal game, but from there, the Hurricanes took over. Jordan Martinook scored to make it 3-1 at the end of the second period. Then, in the third, the Hurricanes would score three straight, including Svechnikov scoring his second of the game to win 6-1.

Meanwhile, the Capitals come into the game sitting at 18-12-6 on the year but have struggled as of late. They have lost five of their last six games, and last time outfaced the New Jersey Devils. Nico Hischier scored twice in the first ten minutes of the game against the Devils to give them the lead. Connor McMichael scored on the power play to make it a one-goal game heading into the second. They fell by two again in the early part of the second, but Evgeny Kuznetsov and John Carlson scored to make it a tie game with just 1:02 left in the period. Still, with just 16 seconds left in the period, the Devils scored again to take the third into the third. In the third, they would add two more, beating the Capitals 6-3.

Here are the NHL Odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

NHL Odds: Hurricanes-Capitals Odds

Carolina Hurricanes: -156

Washington Capitals: +130

Over: 5.5 (-122)

Under: 5.5 (+100

How to Watch Hurricanes vs. Capitals

Time: 7:00 PM ET/ 4:00 PM PT

TV: NHLPP/ESPN+

Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)

Why The Hurricanes Will Win

The Hurricanes sit ninth in the NHL in goals per game, coming in with 3.39 per contest this year. They are led by Sebastian Aho, who leads the team in goals, points, and assists this year. He has 15 goals, 28 assists, and 43 total points. Aho has also been great on the power play, with four goals and 14 assists this year when a man up. Further, he has been hot as of late. He has points in eight of his last nine games, with four games with three or more points. Meanwhile, Andrei Svechnikov is coming off a two-goal game. He now has eight goals on the year, with three of them on the power play.

Sitting tied second on the team in goals and second in points this year is Seth Jarvis. Jarvis comes in with 13 goals and 14 assists on the year, good for 27 points. He has eight goals on the power play, which is the most on the team, while also having two assists. Sitting tied with him in goals is Teuvo Teravainen. Teravainen has 13 goals, but just eight assists this year for his 21 points. Martin Necas and Michal Bunting round out the top scorers on the road. Both of them come into the game with nine goals and 17 assists, for 26 points. Bunting has been better on the power play, with five power-play goals.

The Hurricanes are fifth in the NHL this year on the power play. They come in with a conversion rate of 27.3 percent and 36 power-play goals. Meanwhile, they are ninth in the NHL when a man is down this year, sitting with an 83.1 percent success rate.

The Hurricanes are expected to start Pyotr Kochetkov in goal for this one. He is 10-7-3 on the year with a 2.53 goals-against average and a .904 save percentage. He is on a solid streak of starts as of late. In one of his last five starts, he has allowed two or fewer goals, coming away with a 3-1-1 record in his last five games.

Why The Capitals Will Win

The Capitals have now scored seven goals in their last two games, well above their season average. On the year, they score just 2.36 goals per game, which is 30th in the NHL.  Alex Ovechkin is the team leader in points this year while being fourth in goals and second in assists. He comes in with eight goals and 16 assists this year, good for his 24 points. He also is setting up the power play well, with three goals and eight assists. Meanwhile, Leading the team in goals this year, while also being second on the team in points is Dylan Strome. Strome enters the game with 13 goals and nine assists this year, good for 22 points. He has four goals and three assists on the year on the power play.

Tom Wilson and Anthony Mantha also have been primary scorers for this team this year. Wilson enters the game with 11 goals this year and eight assists, good for 19 points, which is fourth on the team. He has three goals on the power play as well. Mantha also comes in with 11 goals this year, while having seven assists, good for 18 total points. He has just one power-play goal though.

The Capitals have been better on the power play as of late. Just two weeks ago, they were 31st in the NHL on the power play, but now they sit 27th, with 14 power-play goals and a 13.7 percent success rate. Meanwhile, on the penalty kill, they are 12th in the NHL with an 81.1 percent success rate.

Darcy Kuemper is expected to start in goal in this game. He is 9-8-2 on the year with a 3.15 goals-against average and a .893 save percentage. Last time out was a solid rebound game for him. He allowed three goals on 35 shots to take the win. In his prior two games, he had allowed five goals in each of them, taking two straight losses.

Final Hurricanes-Capitals Prediction & Pick

The Capitals have been hit and miss all year, and are on a cold streak right now. They are struggling to score and also struggling to defend. In the last five games, they have allowed three or more goals in all of them. Meanwhile, they have scored three goals just twice in the last five games. The Hurricanes have been scoring great. They have scored four or more goals in five of their last seven games, winning five games in there. They have also been solid on defense. This trend will continue in this one, taking the win.

Final Hurricanes-Capitals Prediction & Pick: Hurricanes ML (-156)