Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) skates against the New York Islanders during the third period at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York.

The Tampa Bay Lightning (1-2-0) visit the Washington Capitals (2-1-0) Tuesday at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET (ESPN). Let's analyze BetMGM Sportsbook's NHL odds around the Lightning vs. Capitals odds and make our expert NHL picks and predictions.

Season series: First meeting; Lightning won 2-1 last season

Tampa Bay won its first game of the season Monday, a 4-3 victory over the Boston Bruins as a -157 road favorite as the Over (6) hit. The Lightning jumped out to an early 4-1 lead, scoring 2 goals in each of the first 2 periods, before thwarting a comeback attempt from the Bruins, who scored all 3 of their goals in the second period. C Anthony Cirelli found the back of the net twice.

Washington has won back-to-back games after taking down the New York Rangers 1-0 Sunday as a -113 road favorite as the Under (6) hit. LW Anthony Beauvillier was the lone goal scorer, with LW Alex Ovechkin and D Declan Chisholm each picking up an assist. The Capitals lost LW Pierre-Luc Dubois, who is day-to-day with an undisclosed injury.

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Lightning at Capitals odds

Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 10:46 a.m. ET.

  • Moneyline (ML): Lightning -105 (bet $105 to win $100) | Capitals -115 (bet $115 to win $100)
  • Puck line (PL)/Against the spread (ATS): Lightning +1.5 (-250) | Capitals -1.5 (+200)
  • Over/Under (O/U): 6 (O: -105 | U: -115)

Lightning at Capitals projected goalies

Andrei Vasilevskiy (0-2-0, 4.67 GAA, .855 SV%) vs. Logan Thompson (1-1-0, 2.03 GAA, .930 SV%)

Vasilevskiy has had a tough start to the season. Yet to find his first win, he has allowed 9 goals through his 2 starts, both at home. The 12th-year goalie has struggled dating back to the Lightning's playoff exit, but he will need to turn it around quickly with Jonas Johansson waiting to replace him.

Thompson has had a better start to the season than his opponent, allowing only 4 goals on 57 shot attempts through 2 games. The sixth-year goalie, in his second year with the Capitals, also had success early last year, winning 10 of his first 12 games.

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Lightning at Capitals picks and predictions

Prediction

Capitals 4, Lightning 3

Moneyline

BET CAPITALS (-115).

The Capitals have won back-to-back games on the road and have built momentum heading back home. They will face Vasilevskiy, who has not given confidence to Lightning backers. While the Lightning grabbed a road win Monday, they allowed 2 unanswered goals to end the game and 3 in the second period. Expect a close matchup Tuesday, with the home team prevailing.

Puck line/Against the spread

PASS.

There is minimal value on the puck line in this matchup.

Over/Under

BET OVER 6 (-105).

The Lightning have scored at least 3 goals in each of their 3 games and have allowed 3 or more goals in each contest. They are averaging 3.67 goals per game this season and are allowing 4.33. They have hit the Over in each game.

The Capitals have scored 5 goals combined in their previous 2 games and are averaging 28.7 shots per game so far.

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This article originally appeared on Sportsbook Wire: Tampa Bay Lightning at Washington Capitals odds, picks and predictions

Reporting by Seth Orlemann, Sportsbook Wire / Sportsbook Wire

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