Defenseman Michal Kempny, who is recovering from hamstring surgery which took place on April 2, skated with the Washington Capitals‘ first practice group on Tuesday while wearing a no-contact jersey but left after 20 minutes on the ice. Head coach Todd Reirden stated that getting Kempny in a preseason game would be ideal but he won’t play him until he’s fully healthy. More news from day five of training camp can be found below:

Centers Lars Eller and Evgeny Kuznetsov switched spots in the lineup in preparation for the beginning of the regular season, when the Capitals will not have Kuznetsov available for the first three games due to suspension.

Goaltenders Vitek Vanecek and Ilya Samsonov will split the workload in net for Wednesday’s preseason tilt against the defending Stanley Cup Champion St. Louis Blues.

Todd Reirden said Vitek Vanecek and Ilya Samsonov will split the game in net for the Capitals vs. St. Louis Wednesday.

Braden Holtby might not see his first preseason action til Wednesday at Chicago.

— Tom Gulitti (@TomGulittiNHL) September 17, 2019

Forward prospect Axel Jonnson-Fjallby stated that he plans to stay in North America for the entire season after going back to his native Sweden in the middle of last year.

Reirden told the media that his plan was to get goaltender Braden Holtby in the net for the last three preseason games to get him in a rhythm before the regular season starts on October 2.

Practice Groups

Capitals’ Roster vs. Blues

It appears that the Capitals will dress their entire top-nine forward group in their second preseason game. Defensemen John Carlson and Dmitry Orlov will each make their preseason debut while defenseman Radko Gudas, who was acquired in a trade with the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for defenseman Matt Niskanen on June 14, is slated to make his Capitals debut.

Blues Roster

The Blues released their roster for Wednesday night’s game against the Capitals earlier in the day on Tuesday.

Roster tomorrow night at #Allcaps #stlblues pic.twitter.com/eH345N9rbk

— Andy Strickland (@andystrickland) September 17, 2019

Tuesday’s NHL News Bites

• RFA defenseman Brandon Carlo signed a two-year contract that carries an average annual value of $2.85 million with the Boston Bruins
• The Carolina Hurricanes signed UFA defenseman Frederik Claesson to a one-year, two-way contract

Capitals Today

CAPS TODAY: Capitals forward Aliaksei Protas, who was selected in the third round, 91st overall, in the 2019 NHL Draft, recorded three points (1g, 2a) in the Capitals’ 4-3 overtime win against the Chicago Blackhawks. More info on https://t.co/HecIC0ECg1 pic.twitter.com/74KN504nNu
— CapitalsPR (@CapitalsPR) September 17, 2019

By Harrison Brown