The Washington Capitals held a full morning skate this morning at MedStar Capitals Iceplex in advance of their tilt with the Seattle Kraken tonight at Capital One Arena. Puck drop is set for 7:00 PM on NBC Sports Washington.
Back to work. #ALLCAPS pic.twitter.com/9x65EwimNV
— NoVa Caps (@NoVa_Caps) March 5, 2022
Axel Jonsson-Fjallby, recalled by the Capitals on Friday, took Carl Hagelin’s spot on the fourth line. If Jonsson-Fjallby plays tonight it will be his 10th game with the Capitals which will make it necessary for him to clear waivers in order for him to return to Hershey. He would likely be in Washington to stay for the remainder of the season.
Capitals lines in AM skate vs Seattle:
Ovechkin-Kuznetsov-Wilson
Mantha-Backstrom-Oshie
McMichael-Eller-Sheary
AJF-Dowd-HathawayFehervary-Carlson
Orlov-Jensen
TvR-Schultz*Sprong is the extra
— Samantha Pell (@SamanthaJPell) March 5, 2022
Vitek Vanecek will get the start in goal tonight against the Kraken. Daniel Sprong was once again the extra skater.
Words from Laviolette
Laviolette met with the media following morning skate. He spoke about the addition of Axel Jonsson-Fjallby to the Capitals lineup.
What’s Kraken
The Washington Capitals host the Seattle Kraken tonight for the second and final time this season. Washington lost the first matchup to Seattle, 5-2, at Climate Pledge Arena on Nov. 21, 2021. This marks the first time the Capitals have ever played the Kraken at Capital One Arena.
Tom The Bomb
Tom Wilson met with the media following morning skate. He spoke about the return of Anthony Mantha and the victory over the Carolina Hurricanes.
Van-tastic
Caps goaltender Vitek Vanecek, who was selected by the Kraken in the 2021 expansion draft before the Capitals re-acquired him via trade, stopped all 36 shots he faced on Thursday against the Carolina Hurricanes, marking his third shutout of the season. Vanecek’s 36 stops were the most by a Capitals goaltender in a shutout effort since March 22, 2018 (Philipp Grubauer: 39 saves at Detroit).
Thursday’s game also marked Vanecek’s 60th career start. With five shutouts to start his career, Vanecek joined Braden Holtby (7 shutouts), Jim Carey (7 shutouts) and Ilya Samsonov (6 shutouts) as the only goaltenders in franchise history with five or more shutouts in their first 60 starts.
Vanecek has recorded a 1.55 goals-against average and a .946 save percentage and over his last nine games dating back to Jan. 15, a span that includes three shutouts. He is 11-7-5 on the season with a 2.26 goals-against average and a .920 save percentage. In 26 games, Vanecek has a 1.65 goals-against average and a .940 save percentage at five-on-five. Among goaltenders with at least 1,000 minutes played, he has the lowest goals-against average, and second highest save percentage in the NHL.
Slick Nick
Nicklas Backstrom sat with Mike Vogel for today’s ringside update. He discussed the improving power play, the return of linemate Anthony Mantha and return of the second line.
