The Washington Capitals, seeded first, and the defending champion Florida Panthers are both aiming to conclude their initial Eastern Conference series. Meanwhile, the Winnipeg Jets, winners of the Presidents` Trophy, seek to gain an advantage in their Western Conference clash with the St. Louis Blues. The 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs continue Wednesday with a lineup of three games.
Washington has a chance to secure its first playoff series victory since beating the Vegas Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup Final back in 2018. They will host the Montreal Canadiens for Game 5. Montreal was close to tying the series at two games each on Sunday, just 20 minutes away, but Brandon Duhaime netted two goals in a four-goal third period, leading the Capitals to a 5-2 comeback win and a 3-1 series lead.
The Panthers head to Tampa Bay hoping to eliminate the Lightning in five games in the first round, repeating their feat from the previous postseason. Florida also mounted a third-period comeback in Game 4 on Monday, scoring three goals in 2:07 late in the final frame to overturn a deficit and clinch a 4-2 victory.
However, the Panthers will again miss defenseman Aaron Ekblad. He had scored the tying goal with 3:47 left in regulation on Monday in only his second game back after serving a 20-game suspension for breaching the NHL/NHLPA Performance Enhancing Substances Program. The 29-year-old was handed a separate two-game ban by the league for elbowing Tampa Bay`s Brandon Hagel in the head during the second period of Game 4.
In the series between the Jets and Blues, the home team has consistently won. Winnipeg secured the first two games at Canada Life Centre, while St. Louis took the next two at Enterprise Center. After conceding the initial goal in Game 4 on Sunday, the Blues asserted dominance, forcing two-time Vezina Trophy winner and 2025 finalist Connor Hellebuyck out of the net for the second game in a row on their way to a 5-1 win. St. Louis has a 13-5 scoring advantage over Winnipeg in the last three games, bouncing back from a 5-3 defeat in Game 1.
Building on a five-day streak of successful postseason prop bets, here are some players offering good value to consider for Wednesday`s playoff games.
Recommended Prop Bets for Wednesday
Alex Ovechkin, Capitals – Anytime Goal Scorer (+110)
Despite Washington`s five goals in their Game 4 win against Montreal, Ovechkin surprisingly didn`t score. The NHL`s all-time top regular-season goal scorer did find the net twice in the series opener and scored again in Game 3. Ovechkin, a 39-year-old and nine-time Maurice Richard Trophy recipient, hasn`t gone two consecutive games without scoring since March 11-13, having scored 14 goals in his last 19 appearances. I anticipate the Capitals will seal the series against the Canadiens on Wednesday and expect Ovechkin to be a key contributor.
Sam Reinhart, Panthers – Anytime Goal Scorer (+200)
Reinhart scored two or more goals in every series Florida played last postseason, including three goals in their five-game first-round series against Tampa Bay. The 29-year-old scored in the first period of the current series opener against the Lightning but has not scored since. The Panthers will move to the second round with a victory on Wednesday, and I wouldn`t be surprised if Reinhart helps achieve this by scoring against Andrei Vasilevskiy.
Aleksander Barkov, Panthers – 1+ Assist (+106)
Going back to the regular season, Barkov has recorded at least one assist in 11 consecutive games and hasn`t failed to register an assist in back-to-back games since March 20-22. His only game without an assist in the current series was Florida`s 5-1 loss in Game 3. Barkov has accumulated 45 assists in 66 career games against the Lightning, including 14 in 19 playoff matches.
Cam Fowler, Blues – 1+ Assist (+146)
Fowler is having a strong series for St. Louis, currently tied for fifth in the NHL with eight points this postseason. The 33-year-old became just the eighth defenseman to ever record at least five points in a playoff game with his goal and four assists in the Blues` 7-2 win over the Jets in Game 3. Fowler has nine assists during his current five-game point streak, which started in St. Louis` final regular-season game against the Utah Hockey Club, and has totaled 14 assists in his last 17 playoff appearances.
Elton Marrow