Following a much-deserved day-off for the team on Sunday, the Washington Capitals were back to work on Monday for morning skate in advance of their rematch with the Anaheim Ducks Monday night at Capital One Arena.
Ilya Samsonov was the first goalie off the ice this morning and will get the start in goal tonight against the Ducks. Samsonov is 10-1-1 with a 2.33 GAA and a .917 save percentage so far this season.
The Capitals lines at morning skate:
Capitals lines at AM skate ahead of their game vs Anaheim:
Ovechkin-Kuznetsov-Wilson
Hagelin-Eller-Oshie
Sheary-McMichael-Sprong
Malenstyn-Protas-LeasonFehervary-Carlson
Orlov-Jensen
Irwin-Schultz— Samantha Pell (@SamanthaJPell) December 6, 2021
Garnet Hathaway is unavailable due to the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol the team announced on Monday morning.
Duck Hunt
The Capitals continue their season-long four-game homestand when they face the Anaheim Ducks tonight for the second and final time this season. The Caps have posted a record of 8-1-4 at Capital One Arena this season and are one of three NHL teams with just one regulation loss at home.
Mondays#ALLCAPS pic.twitter.com/xH8VSG82zl
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) December 6, 2021
Washington lost the first matchup to Anaheim in overtime, 3-2, on Nov. 16 at the Honda Center. The Capitals have won eight of their last 14 games against the Ducks and have earned a point in 13 of their last 19 games against Anaheim (11-6-2). Alex Ovechkin has earned 26 points (12g, 14a) in 21 games against Anaheim in his career. The Capitals have posted a 10-4-0 record against the Ducks in games when Ovechkin earns a point.
Inside The Numbers
The Ducks have the better special teams and face-off numbers heading into Monday night’s tilt with the Capitals. They are also generating more shots per game but the Capitals are doing better at shot suppression.
The Capitals currently have slightly better possession numbers, with a sizable advantage in high-danger goals for percentage. The Capitals also have better goals for and against differentials than the Ducks.
Coach Laviolette
Tonight’s game against the Ducks will mark Peter Laviolette’s 82nd game as the head coach of the Capitals. Laviolette was named the 19th head coach in franchise history on Sept. 15, 2020. Currently at a record of 51-19-11 over the last two seasons, Laviolette is the only coach in franchise history to earn 50 wins within his first 82 games. Regardless of the result tonight, Laviolette will have the best 82-game start in franchise history by a head coach.
“It was just go out there, play hockey. Trust the system, trust your game and have some fun with it.”
Matt Irwin joins Rinkside Update fresh off making his Caps debut last week.#CapsDucks | @MedStarHealth pic.twitter.com/KgOEvdzKvv
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) December 6, 2021
There have been 20 instances in NHL history of a head coach earning at least 50 wins within his first 82 games. With a win tonight against Anaheim, Laviolette’s points percentage will rise to .701%, which will tie for the ninth-highest points percentage by a head coach among this group. Laviolette, who recorded the most wins by an American-born coach in NHL history on Oct. 13 against the New York Rangers and passed Pat Quinn for the 11th most wins in NHL history on Nov. 24th against the Montreal Canadiens, is now four wins shy of passing Dick Irvin (691) for the 10th-most wins in NHL history.
By Jon Sorensen
