Captain Alex Ovechkin will miss his seventh straight game due to a lower-body injury sustained in the final minutes of regulation during the Washington Capitals‘ 1-0 shootout win over the New York Islanders on April 22 against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday (7 PM ET, NBC Sports Washington). The 35-year-old skated before the team’s optional morning skate on Saturday. It marked the first time Ovechkin has been on the ice since Monday.
Laviolette wouldn’t put a timeframe on Ovechkin but noted that the #Caps‘ captain is indeed improving. “It’s good to see him out there. That’s always a positive sign; it’s the first steps. So that’s a good thing. …We’ll go slow and we’ll make sure.”
— Tarik El-Bashir (@Tarik_ElBashir) May 8, 2021
Goaltender Craig Anderson will make just his fourth appearance of the season on Saturday after Vitek Vanecek made 25 saves in Friday’s 4-2 loss to the Flyers. The 39-year-old has not played since April 15, when he played 24:44 in a 5-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres. Ilya Samsonov, who has missed the past three games, is still on COVID-19 protocol.
“It’s exciting for me to be called upon and go out there and do the job … enjoy that and take that opportunity and make the most of it.”
Craig Anderson speaks with the media ahead of being expected to make his second start of the season tonight.#CapsFlyers | @MedStarHealth pic.twitter.com/5FPnHuT6Rz
— x – Washington Capitals (@Capitals) May 8, 2021
Defenseman Justin Schultz could return to the lineup after missing three games with a lower-body injury but head coach Peter Laviolette would not confirm whether he will.
The NHL sent out a memo on Friday night announcing that COVID-19 restrictions and protocols will be eased for vaccinated individuals for the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The #NHL has relaxed its COVID-19 protocol for playoff teams that will allow for greater freedoms with regards to masks, testing, team meetings, social gatherings and travel – once 85 per cent of a team’s traveling party is fully vaccinated.
More coming in a story soon.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) May 8, 2021
The East Division title could be locked up on Saturday. Below are the scenarios for how the Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins could secure it:
The @penguins and @Capitals both hit the ice today with a chance to lock up the No. 1 seed in the MassMutual East Division. #NHLStats pic.twitter.com/YkmvHV6Kv2
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) May 8, 2021
Capitals Today
CAPS TODAY: The Capitals are 13-6-0 in back-to-back games this season, 7-2-0 in the second half of the back-to-backs and 3-0-0 when they lose the first game of the set. More info on the Caps and Caps Clips at https://t.co/HecIC0ECg1 pic.twitter.com/XjPrqsIozd
— CapitalsPR (@CapitalsPR) May 8, 2021
By Harrison Brown
