The New York Islanders begin a short road trip as they face the Washington Capitals. It is time to continue our NHL odds series with an Islanders-Capitals prediction, pick, and how-to-watch.

The Islanders enter the game at 15-8-8 on the year, third in the Metropolitan Division. They also have been playing well as of late, winning seven of their last ten games. Last time out, they faced the Edmonton Oilers. Leon Draisaitl scored just 1:23 into the game to take the 1-0 lead for the Oilers. In the second, the Islanders scored on the power play twice, and then once shorthanded, to give them the 3-1 lead. Ilya Sorokin would save 30 of the 31 shots he faced and the Islanders would take a 3-1 lead.

Meanwhile, the Capitals sit at 15-9-4 on the year and have won five of their last ten. They sit in fifth in the Metropolitan Division but are just four points behind the Islanders. Last time out, they faced the Carolina Hurricanes. After Sebastian Aho scored the first goal of the game at the 7:41 mark of the second period, the Capitals answered with Martin Fehervary scoring his first goal of the year. Darcy Kuemper was great in the game, saving 28 of 29 shots, and the game would go to a shootout. There, the Capitals would be the only team to find the back of the net and would take the win.

Here are the NHL Odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

NHL Odds: Islanders-Capitals Odds

New York Islanders: +106

Washington Capitals: -128

Over: 5.5 (-138)

Under: 5.5 (+112)

How to Watch Islanders vs. Capitals

Time: 7:30 PM ET/ 4:30 PM PT

TV: TNT

Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)

Why The Islanders Will Win

The Islanders are scoring 3.10 goals per game this year, good for 18th in the NHL on the season. The top goal producer for the Islanders this year is Brock Nelson. Nelson enters the game with a team-leading 15 goals on the year, while also giving 12 assists, good for 28 points. He also has four goals and six assists on the power play this year. Meanwhile, two men share the spot for the lead in points on the team. First is Mathew Barzal, who enters the game with ten goals and 23 assists on the year, for his 33 points. He has three goals and ten assists on the power play as well.

Tied for first is Noah Dobson, the defenseman. He has just five goals but leads the team with 28 assists, good for his 33 points. He is also the team leader in plus/minus at plus 17 on the year while having a goal and 12 assists on the power play. Meanwhile, Bo Horvat and Simon Holmstrom both come in with double-digit goal totals on the year. Horvat comes in with 13 goals and 18 assists on the year, good for 31 points. He leads the team with power-play goals with five while having five power-play assists. Holmstrom comes in with ten goals and three assists. A lot of his work has been done shorthanded this year, as he has five goals and an assist shorthanded this year.

The power play has been great for the Islanders this year, as they sit fifth in the NHL this year with a 26.4 percent conversion rate on the power play. Further, they have scored 23 times when having the man advantage. On the penalty kill, the Islanders have not been as good. They are last in the NHL with a 72.0 percent success rate, but thye are tied for the NHL lead with eight shorthanded goals this year.

Semyon Varlamov will be in goal tonight against the Capitals. He is 6-4-1 on the year with a 2.73 goals-against average and a .919 save percentage. This will be his third start against the Capitals already this year. He is 1-1 in those starts allowing three goals on 59 shots. All three goals came in the loss, as he shut the Capitals out on November 2nd.

Why The Capitals Will Win

The Capitals have consistently struggled to score this year, sitting 30th in the NHL with just 2.39 goals per game this year. The leading goal scorer this year is Dylan Strome. He enters the game with 12 goals on the year, with six assists, good for 18 points.  His 18 points are tied for the lead on the team this year. Meanwhile, three of the goals are of the power play variety. Strome is tied for the most points with Tom Wilson. Wilson comes in with ten goals this year, while also having eight assists. He has three goals on the power play, while also having one shorthanded this year.

Alex Ovechkin is third on the team in points this year while sitting second on the team in assists. Ovechkin comes in with just five goals this year but has 12 assists, good for 17 points, on the team. He has struggled with someone's power play this year, with just one power-play goal, but has five assists on the power play. Meanwhile, The Capitals get some help from the blue line. John Carlson leads the team in assists this year, coming into the game with one goal this year and 14 assists.

The Capital's power play has been better as of late but is still the worst in the NHL. They have scored just eight times on the power play this year, good for a 9.8 percent conversion rate. They have been good on the penalty kill though, sitting 12th in the NHL with an 81.5 percent success rate.

Charlie Lindgren is scheduled to be in goal today for the Capitals. He is 6-3-2 on the year with a 2.45 goals-against average and a .925 save percentage. Both of those marks are top ten in the NHL this year. Still, he is just 1-1-2 in his four starts this month, having one shutout, and allowing ten goals in the other three starts.

Final Islanders-Capitals Prediction & Pick

The Capitals come into the game off an off day and are at home. Meanwhile, the Islanders just played in a physical match-up last night, and have to make the trip to Washington in this one. Further, these two have already met twice this year, with each team getting a win on the other's home ice.  Four of the most recent matchups have been decided by just one goal. With this match-up normally being tight, take the better-rested team at home in this one.

Final Islanders-Capitals Prediction & Pick: Capitals ML (-128)