New Jersey Devils vs Washington Capitals Picks and Predictions for Saturday, October 17th, 2026
On Saturday, the New Jersey Devils visit the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena in the Nation’s capital. The opening faceoff is at 1:00 pm ET. New Jersey is 4-3-0 and tied for third in the Metropolitan Division with Washington, who is also 4-3-0. The Devils have been victorious in three of the last five games, while the Capitals are 3-1-0 at home and are coming off a 5-4 win over Montreal. Check out our free NHL picks for more predictions.
New Jersey Devils need better goaltending
New Jersey beat the New York Rangers 7-1 in its most recent outing on Thursday, and the Devils have scored a dozen goals in the last two games. New Jersey scores an average of 3.29 goals per game on an average of 35.6 shots. At the same time, the Devils allow an average of 3.29 goals per game on 25 shots per game.
Jack Hughes leads the Devils in points with nine, on a pair of goals and seven assists. Jesper Bratt has seven points, and Nico Hischier has scored a team-best four goals, which includes three power-play goals. Goalie Jake Allen is 3-1-0 with a save percentage of .885 and a goals-against average of 2.98. Backup Nico Daws is 1-2-0 with a .857 SV% and 3.38 GAA.
Injuries: Luke Evangelista, Connor Brown, Nick Bjugstad and Seamus Casey are out.
Washington Capitals are Tough at Home
Washington beat Montreal 5-4 last time out, following losses to both Carolina and Seattle. Washington scores an average of 3.43 goals per game, while taking an average of 26.1 shots. The Caps give up 29.6 shots and 3.14 goals per game. Washington has scored three goals or more in four of the past five games. The power play for Washington is scoring 15.8% of the time with the man advantage, and the penalty kill has held opponents scoreless 83.3% of the time the Caps are short-handed.
Alex Tuch has six points to lead Washington, with five goals and one assist. Ryan Leonard has six points as well, while Dylan Strome has five assists to lead the Capitals. Goalie Logan Thompson has a record of 3-2-0 with a .904 save percentage and 2.84 goals-against average. Charlie Lindgren, who shares duties with Thompson, is 1-1-0 with a .898 SV% and 3.06 GAA.
Injuries: Rasmus Sandin, Matt Roy and Patrick Thomas are out. Pierre-Luc Dubois is day-to-day.
Key To The Game
New Jersey is taking 9.5 more shots per game than Washington and allowing 4.6 fewer. The Capitals have the stronger penalty kill and a 3-1-0 home record, but the Devils have produced more scoring chances through their shot volume.
New Jersey Devils vs Washington Capitals Pick
- New Jersey Devils
New Jersey has scored 12 goals in two games and has the advantage in shots taken and shots allowed. Hughes and Hischier have also been producing offensively. Washington has been strong at home, but the Devils' recent scoring and higher shot totals give New Jersey the edge.
New Jersey Devils vs Washington Capitals Over/Under Pick
- Over
Both teams are averaging more than three goals per game and allowing more than three. New Jersey's last two games produced 12 Devils goals, while Washington has allowed nine goals in its last two home games. Those numbers support a higher-scoring matchup.