You just knew the Presidents' Trophy winners weren't going down without a fight. Alexander Ovechkin played one of his better games of the year on Sunday to lead his Washington Capitals to a 3-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins to keep their season alive.
They'll have to win one on the road in the 'Burgh this Tuesday to force a Game 7.
NHL Playoff Odds at BookMaker.eu
Washington Capitals +115
Pittsburgh Penguins -135
Over/Under 5
ODDS ANALYSIS
Here's where things get interesting for Pittsburgh. The Pens are 4-1 in the playoffs on home ice and are now 30-12-1-3 for the season here at the CONSOL. They were -135 in the first of their two home games in this series, and they were +117 in the second, though they had some suspensions they had to deal with in the latter game.
Now what? All signs point to this game being lined around Pittsburgh -135 or so, but there's no doubt this will be the toughest of the six games to line and to call.
GOALIE REPORT
Braden Holtby made some of his best saves of this series in Game 5, and he was a deserving winner for sure on home ice. He stopped 30-of-31 shots, allowing just a Chris Kunitz laser to get past him in the first period. He was the busier goalie of the two for sure on Sunday, as Matt Murray had to face just 19 shots and let three get past him.
Murray, who was so good at the start of these playoffs, all of a sudden has allowed at least three goals in three of his last six games and two goals in two of the other three, numbers which reek of mediocrity in a series which he has to be phenomenal in all likelihood to win.
LIVE BETTING
The Penguins had done a fantastic job in this series of avoiding too many penalty kill situations. They didn't on Sunday, and they paid the price in a big way. Washington paid off two 5-on-4s, and Ovechkin was right in the center of both them.
Ovie had the goal which opened up Game 5 at 4:04 of the first period, and he was the primary assister on the T.J. Oshie goal in the second which gave Washington a lead it wouldn't relent.
It's only Ovechkin's second multi-point game since Game 3 against Philly, but it's clear now that if he's on his game, the Capitals are still very tough to beat.
QUICK PICK
This series was one which always had the potential to go seven, and we think that's where we're headed at this point.
There's going to be a lot of money coming in on Pittsburgh for sure, but color us concerned about the way Murray played on Sunday night. If he isn't able to buckle down and play out of his mind, he's going to have a lot to be worried about, and so should Pittsburgh's bettors.
We really haven't seen the big boys take this series over until Sunday. Ovechkin outplayed Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and the rest pretty much by himself, and if he plays like a man possessed again in this one, Washington will again live to fight another day.
NHL Odds: Capitals 4, Penguins 2
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