The Florida Panthers will try to win their first playoff series since 1996 as they face the Washington Capitals in Game 6 in the nation's capital. It's time to continue our NHL odds coverage with a Panthers-Capitals prediction and pick.

 

The Panthers rallied to defeat the Capitals 5-3 in Game 5 to regain the advantage in this series. Florida fell behind when John Carlson fired a laser that T.J. Oshie redirected past goalie Sergei Bobrovsky, putting the Capitals up 1-0. Then, Justin Schultz plucked a juicy rebound into the net on a second chance to make it 2-0 Washington. The second period came, and the Capitals kept it going, as Oshie connected off a pass from Evgeny Kuznetsov to fire one past Bobrovsky to give the Caps a commanding 3-0 lead.

Florida began its comeback when Carter Verhaeghe got one past Ilya Samsonov to put the Panthers on the board. Next, Patric Hornqvist got loose on a breakaway and slung it past Samsonov to cut the deficit to 3-2. Sam Reinhart capped the comeback when he capitalized off a loose puck to fling it into the net to make it 3-3 heading into the third. The story of the “Comeback Cats” continued as Verhaeghe stole the puck, passed it to Aleksander Barkov, and then got it back to ice the shot into the net. The Panthers led 4-3. Then, Claude Giroux finished the comeback to direct the Panthers to the victory. The Panthers can win their first series in over two decades with a Game 6 victory.

Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Panthers-Capitals NHL Playoffs odds:

NHL Playoffs Odds: Panthers-Capitals Odds

Panthers: -1.5 (+130)

Capitals: +1.5 (-156)

Over: 6.5 (-140)

Under: 6.5 (+114)

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Why The Panthers Could Cover The Spread

Florida took 38 shots in Game 5. Also, the Panthers won 52 percent of their faceoffs. Bobrovsky's standout performance under adversity helped propel them to the win as he stopped 30 attempts on 33 shots. The Panthers received spectacular secondary scoring as Verhaeghe led the way with two goals and three assists. Also, Giroux had a goal and an assist.

However, the Panthers could get Jonathan Huberdeau involved. He had two shots and three assists. Alternatively, Barkov contributed two assists to help his team. Florida must do a better job of blocking in front of its goaltender, as they prevented only 10 shots from getting to Bobrovsky. Likewise, they need to hit more as the Capitals crushed them in that category, winning hits by 13. The Panthers did not convert on any of their three power-play chances in Game 5 and are 0 for 16 on the extra-man attack in the series.

The Panthers will cover the spread if Huberdeau can get involved. He has one goal and two assists over the series and would need to contribute more to catapult his Panthers into the second round. Additionally, Florida must get more physical, blocking more shots and delivering further hits. Lastly, the Panthers have to convert on the power play. They lead the series despite not converting a single power-play opportunity. That string of luck will not continue. 

Why The Capitals Could Cover The Spread

Washington has played a mostly-solid series. However, the Caps are down to the brink and need to pull out all the stops to advance. Samsonov must perform better in the net. He allowed five goals in Game 5 and was unable to counter the desperate Florida attack. It was his worst performance of the series and he will look to rebound. 

The Capitals cannot collapse under pressure. They blew a 3-0 lead in Game 5 due to an increased Panthers attack, and simple plays on the ice. Washington held its ground, stopping all the power-play chances. However, they allowed Florida to outskate and outhustle them in the second period, which led to five unanswered goals. The defenders must clamp down and prevent this from happening again. Carlson and Schultz must lead the blue line and pressure the Florida offense at all times and not let up. 

The Capitals will cover the spread if they continue to convert on their power-play chances. Additionally, they cover if their defense can hold the fort and not let Samsonov take so many shots. The Caps can send this series back to Florida, but they need to play 60 minutes of excellent hockey. 

Final Panthers-Capitals Game 6 Prediction & Pick

Florida's one win in the nation's capital came in an overtime thriller in Game 4. Thus, they are not going to blow out the Capitals in their building. The safest bet is to take the close game with the Capitals covering the spread. Do they win the game and send it to a deciding seventh game? Perhaps, but that is not the bet. Expect a close game that goes down to the wire, with neither fanbase finding room to breathe.

Final Panthers-Capitals Game 6 Prediction & Pick: Capitals: +1.5 (-156)