Vegas Play of the Day: Capitals at Flames

By Jesse Granger

Sunday, Oct. 29, 2017 | 10:40 a.m.

We’ve entered the fourth season of the annual South Point-lined Play of the Day competition, effective July 1.

Starting bankrolls have reset to $10,000, with the maximum bet being to win $1,000 and the minimum wager $300. Ray Brewer won back-to-back titles in the 2015-2016 and 2016-17 seasons, after Taylor Bern prevailed in 2014-2015.

Washington Capitals plus-125 at Calgary Flames: $400 to win $500

Following their President’s Trophy season in 2016-17, where they finished with the best regular season record in the entire NHL, the Washington Capitals are off to a slow start to this year. Last season the Capitals didn’t have their fifth loss in regulation until Nov. 20, and this year they’re already 5-5-1 despite Alex Ovechkin’s hot offensive start.

Ovechkin is second in the NHL in goals (10) and points (15) behind only Nikita Kucherov of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Flames entered the season with slightly lower expectations, but have still be underwhelming through the first 11 games with a 5-6-0 record. Last year’s squad had offensive firepower but lacked goaltending. Calgary shored that up during the offseason by acquiring Mike Smith, who has played well with a 2.44 goals against average. The problem is the Flames’ offensive production has dropped dramatically, ranking 29th in the league with only 2.3 goals per game.

While the Capitals aren’t in the best situation, playing on the road in the second night of a back-to-back, I still think they can out score the Flames. Calgary hasn’t scored more than two goals in regulation in its last five games.

Current Standings: Granger (8-7, $11,975), Keefer (11-11-1, $9,571), Brewer (12-11, $9,530), Grimala (5-6, $8,715)