Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images
The Washington Capitals wrap up their regular-season series with the Seattle Kraken on Friday just eight days after falling at Climate Pledge Arena by a score of 3-2 in overtime despite leading 2-0 after the first period. Action from Capital One Arena can be seen on NBC Sports Washington+ in-market or ESPN+ out-of-market starting at 7 PM ET
SCHEDULE
Seattle: start four-game Southeast road trip after going 1-2-0 on a three-game homestand
Washington: return home from a season-long six-game road trip (3-2-1) but continue a stretch where they play eight of nine away from home
RECORDS
Seattle: 15-7-3/.660 points percentage – second in Pacific Division, tied for second in Western Conference; 8-1-1 on road, fifth in NHL
Washington: 12-12-4/.500 points percentage – sixth in Metropolitan Division, 12th in Eastern Conference in points; 7-4-1 at home, 16th
HOW EACH TEAM IS DOING
Seattle: outscored 9-3 in two straight regulation losses after going 7-0-1 in their previous eight, including seven wins in a row, and 10-3-2 in their previous 15
Washington: 5-2-1 in their last eight since dropping nine of their previous 11 (2-6-3)
TEAM LEADERS
Seattle
- C Jarred McCann (12 goals)
- LW Andre Burakovsky (17 assists, 26 points)
- D Adam Larsson (23:44 TOI/game)
Notes: Burakovsky, 27, has five goals and 11 points over his last seven games and 14 assists and 21 points in his last 19; McCann, 26, has five goals in his last five and seven goals and nine points in his last nine; RW Jordan Eberle has 14 assists and 20 points in his last 20; Rookie C Matty Beniers gone scoreless in his last two after scoring six goals and 12 points over a six-game point-streak; D Justin Schultz (who spent the last two seasons in Washington) has gone scoreless in his last three after scoring two goals and 10 points over a six-game point-streak; D Vince Dunn has two goals, six points, and a +9 rating in his last seven; LW Jaden Schwartz has just one goal (which came vs. Washington) in his last five; LW Brandon Tanev has gone scoreless in six straight
Washington
- LW Alex Ovechkin (15 goals, 27 points)
- C Evgeny Kuznetsov (17 assists each)
- D John Carlson (23:31 TOI/game)
Notes: Ovechkin, 37, has seven goals and six multi-point games in his last 10 (11 points) after a two-goal outing in Washington’s 4-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday; Kuznetsov, 30, has four assists over a three-game assist streak, including two in Philadelphia; Carlson has three goals and five points in his last six; C Dylan Strome has a goal and four points over a three-game point streak and two goals and 10 points over his last 11; LW Conor Sheary has two goals and four points in his last four and three goals in his last two vs. Seattle; LW Anthony Mantha has gone scoreless in eight of his last 10 (goal, three points); RW T.J. Oshie has goals in back-to-back games
KEY TEAM STATS
Goals-per-game: SEA – 3.60 (5th) WSH – 2.79 (27th)
Goals-against per game: SEA – 3.16 (18th) WSH – 3.00 (T-11th)
Power Play: SEA – 25% (10th) WSH – 21.2% (T-22nd)
Penalty Kill: SEA – 68.3% (30th) WSH – 80.3% (9th)
Shots-per-game: SEA – 29.4 (28th) WSH – 30.4 (T-20th)
Shots-against per game: SEA – 27 (3rd) WSH – 30.9 (11th)
Faceoff-winning %: SEA – 44.4% (31st) WSH – 48.4% (22nd)
5v5 Corsi-for %: SEA – 52.31% (9th) WSH – 50.24% (15th)
5v5 x Goals-For %: SEA – 53.16% (T-7th) WSH – 49.17% (20th)
5v5 SCF %: SEA – 50.85% (15th) WSH – 50.76% (T-17th)
5v5 Shooting %: SEA – 10.1% (2nd) WSH – 7.38% (25th)
5v5 Save %: SEA – .913 (19th) WSH – .9212 (11th)
5v5 PDO: SEA – 1.015 (T-7th) WSH – .995 (18th)
EXPECTED STARTING GOALTENDERS
Seattle: Philipp Grubauer, 30 — 2-2-1, .868 save percentage, 3.40 goals-against average in seven games this season; 3-1-1, .919 save percentage, 2.62 goals-against average in five career games vs. team he won the Stanley Cup with in 2018, including a 21-save performance (.913 save percentage) in the Emerald City last week
Washington: Charlie Lindgren, 28 — 4-3-2, .902 save percentage, 3.07 goals-against average in 10 games this season; first career start vs. Seattle
INJURIES/ILLNESSES
Seattle
- G Chris Driedger (knee, will miss 26th straight game, out indefinitely)
- RW Joonas Donskoi (upper-body, 26th, indefinite)
- LW Jaden Schwartz (undisclosed, first, day-to-day)
Washington
- G Darcy Kuemper ((lower-body, third, day-to-day)
- D Martin Fehervary (lower-body, third, day-to-day)
- RW Connor Brown (ACL, 25th, indefinite)
- D Dmitry Orlov (lower-body, 16th, day-to-day)
- LW Carl Hagelin (hip, 29th, indefinite)
- RW Tom Wilson (ACL, 29th, indefinite)
- C Nicklas Backstrom (hip, 29th, indefinite)
- LW Beck Malenstyn (finger, 18th, week-to-week)
PROJECTED LINEUPS
Seattle
Karson Kuhlman — Alexander Wennberg — Burakovsky
McCann — Beniers — Eberle
Yanni Gourde — Ryan Donato — Oliver Bjorkstrand
Brandon Tanev — Morgan Geekie — Daniel Sprong
Dunn — Adam Larsson
Jamie Oleksiak — Schultz
Carson Soucy — Will Borgen
Grubauer
Martin Jones
Scratched: D Cale Fleury
Washington
Ovechkin — Strome — Sheary
Sonny Milano — Kuznetsov — Oshie
Marcus Johansson — Lars Eller — Mantha
Aliaksei Protas — Nic Dowd — Garnet Hathaway
Erik Gustafsson — Carlson
Trevor Van Riemsdyk — Nick Jensen
Alexander Alexeyev — Matt Irwin
Lindgren
Hunter Shepard
Scratched: LW Joe Snively, RW Nicolas Aube-Kubel
By Harrison Brown
This may sound silly but I dont understand why the Caps came home for one game and then head to Winnipeg on Sunday afternoon. It would seem logical and also less wear and tear on their bodies due to travel to have played Winnipeg tonight and then gone to Chicago and then to Washington.
Agree Druid. The NHL scheduling and the processes utilized to develop the schedules are a mystery. I envision a person in NY with a blind fold on, pulling pieces of scratch paper out of a top hat.
I read an article which had quite a few players liking the bubble games where teams played closer to home and double headers. After seeing AHL and ECHL rivalries where they do just that, I think an NHL emphasis on division games should be looked into. Cheaper, easier on the players, better rivalries.
Bjorklund is still on Ray’s IR, Mario Culina hired to be Wall’s backup while Clay with the Bears shows that although our goalie pipeline looks good, it can’t handle recalls internally.
I agree with the division games. Playing Philly or NYR only 3 times, and playing Ottawa the same, is kind of ridiculous. This is the sanitized, passion less Gary Bettman NHL. The game is watered down.
Yep, often their trips are not mentioned in the context of reality…meaning this is in my mind the 7th game of a 9 game road trip. Yeah, great that they were home for a free day, but with it just being one game, they travel Afterwords just like they would if this game was in Nashville. Sleeping in own bed and getting taken care of by wife/girlfriend and seeing kids does help though.
By the way, how is Snively doing? Aging like a fine wine?
Yeah, I want reports on Snively! What color suit he wears, blue, black, brown or grey; solid or striped tie; oxfords or loafers. This is important info here!
The fact that Snively is sitting and not getting any games ANYWHERE during his development years does not bother you?
Calm down. I guess my joke didn’t connect. But that’s OK. Sometimes it hits, sometimes it misses. The joke is that if there’s nothing to discuss about his playing, the only thing we can comment on is his wardrobe
Sorry, it did miss.
Sigh, I guess you’re right. But that’s sad. Sad for the Caps, sad for the Bears, and sad for him.
Doesn’t bother me for those that care.
: )
I mean I am so tired of reading / listening to get these young guys in….take the time. Protas is “evidently” playing his ass off and he has provided 3 goals with a good amount of time on top lines. Snively is 26 (maybe 27) he had years to “develop” and this year he has been in some games and other than being fast, he’s had little impact.
It’s not Halloween and everyone gets a treat. Caps are fighting for their lives to maintain a playoff position.
Milano, Protas, Alex now, Beck prior plus Connor are and/or have gotten opportunities…this isn’t rec hocky in Gaithersburg.
Earn / Take a spot or watch.
“It’s not Halloween, and everybody gets a treat” 😂
At the start of the season players keep telling us how they got rusty over the summer. Lord, Holtby could get rusty in a week. I’m not saying that any player has to be in a Caps game but he does need to get in a game. I’d be happy seeing our spares rotate to the Bears as McM just did. However, since Snively’s not waivers exempt, that doesn’t appear to be an option. So in his case, yes, it does mean getting a Caps game in every so often.
Spares, especially young spares, still need game time.
First home game after a lonnnnng road trip makes me nervous