Photo: Molly Riley / Associated Press

After finishing 1-2 on the trip to Western Canada, the Washington Capitals (5-6-1) return home briefly for a Thursday evening matchup with the New York Islanders (7-4-1).  The Capitals will look to turn things around in November, where there is plenty of home cooking on tap.  Puck drop is at 7 PM ET on NBC Sports Washington.

NEW YORK ISLANDERS

The Islanders are 4-1 in their last 5 games and had a heavy dose of road play in October.  The Islanders played 12 games in October, with 5 of them taking place at home.

In their last outing on Monday night, the Islanders defeated the visiting Vegas Golden Knights 6-3.  In the Islanders last 5 games, all of the matchups have been high scoring, with at least 8 goals scored in each contest.

Islanders Captain John Tavares is leading the way for the Islanders with 11 goals and 15 points.  Former Oiler Jordan Eberle is off to a solid start with his new club, as he has 9 points, which is 4^th best on the team.

Goaltenders Jaroslav Halak and Thomas Greiss have almost had the same amount of starts.  Halak has posted better numbers so far, as he has recorded 5 wins, a 2.66 goals against average, and .916 save percentage.  It appears that Jaroslav Halak will be making his third straight start against the Capitals on Thursday night.

#Isles Lines at Practice:
Lee-Tavares-Bailey
Ladd-Barzal-Eberle
Nelson-Beauvillier-Chimera
Kulemin-Cizikas-Clutterbuck

— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) November 1, 2017

WASHINGTON CAPITALS

The Capitals will look to rebound after going 1-2 on their Western Canada road swing.  The Capitals are still banged up as they enter November, with 4 players on the injury report.

The Capitals practiced hard this week, and has said that the Capitals need to find ways to get more powerplays.  Even with the mediocre showing on the road trip, Trotz’s confidence in his team has not been lost.  Trotz stated this week that the Capitals were starting to find their identity against Edmonton.

Trotz said he felt like #Caps made strides toward creating their identity during the road trip, particularly in Edmonton…

— Tarik El-Bashir (@TarikNBCS) October 31, 2017

Trotz on Edmonton: “We’re not a small team. So let’s be hard to check. Let’s defend hard. And you got a good result. It felt right…”

— Tarik El-Bashir (@TarikNBCS) October 31, 2017

Trotz continued: “…After the [Edmonton] game, guys knew that was the right way to play for our group.” #Caps

— Tarik El-Bashir (@TarikNBCS) October 31, 2017

Despite the recent disappointments, Alex Ovechkin is continuing his scoring as he has 10 goals in the first 12 games.  T.J. Oshie recorded 6 goals and 10 points in October, and is having his best start as a pro.

Once the Capitals overcome the injury bug, November can be a promising month for the Capitals as they have plenty of home cooking.  9 of the 14 Capitals games in November are in front of the home crowd in Washington.

A LOOK BACK IN TIME

Evgeny Kuznetsov scored a nifty goal against the New York Islanders earlier this year.

SKATE SHAVINGS

Here is Barry Trotz talking about playing top players versus other top players.

Trotz talks Backstrom and “power against power” matchups. #Caps pic.twitter.com/VOul49hIGX

— Tarik El-Bashir (@TarikNBCS) November 1, 2017

By: George Foussekis