The Washington Capitals will begin 2024 with a date with the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Capitals began the regular season against the Penguins back on Oct. 13, and were blanked 4-0 in a very lopsided affair.
Washington has not been the same team since the holiday break. The Capitals have dropped their last four contests, most recently falling 3-2 in a shootout to the Nashville Predators.
Here are the current projected lines.
Alex Ovechkin – Evgeny Kuznetsov – Tom Wilson
Aliaksei Protas – Connor McMichael – Anthony Mantha
Hendrix Lapierre – Dylan Strome – Matthew Phillips
Beck Malenstyn – Nic Dowd – Nicolas Aube-Kubel
Martin Fehervary – John Carlson
Joel Edmundson – Ethan Bear
Rasmus Sandin – Trevor van Riemsdyk
Darcy Kuemper
Hunter Shepard
Scratched: Max Pacioretty (achillies), T.J. Oshie (upper, day-to-day), Sonny Milano (upper week-to-week), Charlie Lindgren (upper, day-to-day), Nicklas Backstrom (hip)
The Capitals (17-11-6) are going on their second straight back-to-back slate, with two division foes in the Penguins and the New Jersey Devils to follow on Wednesday. They have been very good in those situations, winning their first six games on the second leg of the series. However, that streak was snapped against the Predators.
“I think the focus for us as a staff and our group and what we’re drawing their attention to is the Pittsburgh Penguins tomorrow night,” Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery said following Monday’s practice. “Whether you’re looking at the month, the 16 games that we have until the [All-Star] break, you’re losing focus of what’s important. And then tomorrow night is the most important game we’ve got on the schedule and it’s a really important game for our team overall.”
The Capitals continue to struggle scoring at five-on-five. Carbery continues to mix and match the right line combinations that will produce the most offense. After playing wing for the first time, Evgeny Kuznetsov was reunited on the top line with Alex Ovechkin and Tom Wilson. Dylan Strome, who had been centering the top line for most of the season, will be the middleman for the third line.
They have only played seven games together has a line and have only scored twice, along with generating eight high-danger chances.
“We’re still trying to find some consistency from that line, and I know that line has moved around. I say that all-encompassing of sort of that top six of how that looks. I felt like we went on a good little run there with [Ovechkin], Stromer and Willy. There wasn’t a lot of production, but I thought they played solid and we were winning games,” Carbery said. “It was sort of that stretch where we were grinding games out. And now, as we’ve sort of started to struggle to score and to be able to win those tight games or keep the games tight, we need to find something in that top six.”
Ethan Bear made his Capitals debut against the Predators and logged 20:05 worth of ice time. He also had a prime scoring opportunity that hit the post. Carbery was very pleased with his game. Washington signed the 26-year-old defenseman to a two-year, $4.125 million contract.
Head coach Spencer Carbery discusses kicking off 2024 action with the team’s first visit to Pittsburgh this season tomorrow night.#ALLCAPS pic.twitter.com/S60nPqgYHa
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) January 1, 2024
“Competitiveness. Won a bunch of pucks, felt like he was in good spots positionally to set himself up for success when he was defending the rush,” Carbery said. “So, I liked his game overall and going back through the film, I still like it. There’s a few things with with every defensemen as he gets more comfortable in our system that I think he’ll even be able to continue to progress.”
Even though the Caps’ power play has started to improve, it was 0-for-3 against the Predators. Aliaksei Protas was slotted in on the power play during Monday’s practice. Protas continues to be Washington’s best set up man. He is second on the Capitals with 15 assists and has five assists in his last six games.
“He’s been one of our best players overall this year. And that didn’t start that way, and it’s well documented and he’s continued to get better, better [and] better. With specifically to the passing and his ability to set up like you see, he sees the ice really well when he has the puck and knows where his options are,” Carbery said. “He’s just playing at a high level now. He’s playing three-on-three overtime, four-on-four he’s out there now, late in games, protecting leads. He’s become now one of our top players and so we’re going to try to get him out there in every situation we can.”
Martin Fehervary, who was injured against the New York Islanders, is TBD according to Carbery. He did practice on Monday and skated on the top pair with John Carlson. Meanwhile, Carbery says that Max Pacioretty will hopefully make his season debut next week.
T.J. Oshie and Sonny Milano are still ways away from playing, but Charlie Lindgren isn’t expected to be out long-term. All three of them are dealing with upper-body injuries.
Scouting Pittsburgh
The Penguins (18-13-4) are on a six-game point streak and have won three straight games. They are coming off a 3-1 win against the New York Islanders and are 7-2-1 over the last 10 games.
Similar to the Capitals, scoring has been a been a struggle for the Penguins, mustering just three goals per game with is 21st in the league. Meanwhile, its power play has been dreadful operating at just 13%.
The Penguins have been without forward Bryan Rust for the last 10 games but is eligible to come off of injured-reserve for Tuesday’s matchup.
Jake Guentzel leads Pittsburgh with 40 points (16 goals, 24 assists) in 35 games and has six points (two goals, four assists) in his last five games.
Player To Watch
Defenseman Kris Letang has nine points in his last five games. He had six assists in Pittsburgh’s 7-0 win over the Islanders, becoming the first defenseman since 1986 to record six assists in a game. He was also the seventh defenseman in NHL history to do so.
Letang has 23 points (three goals, 20 assists) in 35 games this season.
Puck drop is slated for 7:30 p.m. The game can be streamed on ESPN+ and Hulu.
By Jacob Cheris
Well this should be special
Still no Patches. That is not encouraging.
Caps to me are hiding something here.
The fact that they signed him to a contract when he was injured shocked me. Then that they put in a clause with bonuses for games played surprised me. Tearing the same achillestwice was not a goodsign. Combine all 3 and you have another Backstrom; someone who wants to play but his body is not letting him. He and Edmunson weresilly signings and a pure wasteof money and roster space. IF he comes back I wonder how long until it is torn again? Isn’t it time that the GM stop grasping at straws and just use the playres he has in Hershey?
It is a low risk signing. Just stop the stupidity. Nothing like Backstrom.
WOW talk about rude, crude and socially unacceptable! No wonder you are anonymmous as I would not want anyone to know me either if I was making remarks likethat. Maybe you should reconsider and stayoff sites where you cannot act like ahumn and consider others opinions. As for Backstrom; he was great but his time came and went and he still tried to play to the detrement of the team. Every player has his career end and some have a problem stepping away. As for low risk signing; on a team that is strapped for cap space there is no such thing as “low risk”. Now please go back into your moms baasement and sit there contemplating that wad of belly button link that you collect!
Stop the stupidity.
I agree with John since he gave his name and that makes him credible.
I agree with John too because this guy does
preach brother preach
At least we got some insight on team IR. Glad Fever is back in next game (or two). Didn’t realize that Oshie and Milano were so far away. Also surprised we have to wait at least another 4 games from Patches. We could use his scoring. Six out of 8 points this week would be huge!
And MP-45 continues in the starting lineup. The ENTIRE roster of the 27-6 Hershey Bears is composed of players better than MP-45. Each one of the Caps injured forwards is superior to MP-45
Totally agree and think that theonly reason he is here is he is salary wise cheap! Maybe if theGm had not wasted money of Edmundson and an injured Pacioretty and waived/cut Backstrom last June, like he should have, they might just have some flexability. Tossing one moe in….as the GM supposedly he tried to trade Kuzy last summer and as he is still here I wonder two things: 1) what the other Gm’sknow/knew about him that sadly the Caps did not or still do not and 2) what was he asking in return as today I do not see more than a 3rd round pick at the best but depending on the team may be lower to moce him. Its interesting that both Kuzu, a 1st round pick but the 26th pick and Samsonov, also a 1stround pick but the 22nd pick, lasted so long in the first round and that so many teams passed on them and that both of them have had problems adjusting to and playing in the NHL. Would you clasify both as head-cases?
1. Edmundson has played consistently well.
2. You live in fantasy land if you think any GM was going to cut Nick Backstrom.
3. Injured Pacioretty was the best of a very few options available at the time.
Cutting Backstrom would never happen and would not have given salary cap relief like we are getting with LTIR. Just stupid comment again.
You’re correct, Anon. 31 GMs would not have picked up Backstrom on waivers. You can only bury up to $1.15 mill in the minors. We’re stuck with Backstrom until he retires, or his contract is up, and Option 1 isn’t very likely.
Disagree.
Confess to be more than a little bit nervous about this coming game. Pittsburgh is hot. We are not. Good luck, Caps.
Happy New Year, DD!
Game has all the makings of a Caps shellacking, no? But this is the WEIRD YEAR of the NHL. Teams go Hot and REAL Cold at the drop of a …. puck
Yeah, but remember, when we play the Pits we are playing the Pits, the refs, and the Toronto Warroom.
Amen
4 pts from 2nd to 7th… dead heat!
Six out of eight points this week likely gets us to second in metro. But game by game. Let’s start by beating the Pens!
LMAO, pleasestop drinking whatever Joy Joy juice you are and come back to earth. They will be lucky to get 2 this week.
Genius prediction. Good grief.
Honestly if the HC goes with that lineup I do not see Ovie scoring unless it is on the PP. At this point sit Kuzy and play Miro.
I hope we don’t start shuffling lines all the time to fix offense, PP, 1st line, 3rd line, and whatnot, kinda like in the late Lavi days…
Concur: “We trained hard . . . but it seemed that every time we were beginning to form up into teams we would be reorganized … we tend to meet any new situation by reorganizing; and a wonderful method it can be for creating the illusion of progress while producing confusion, inefficiency, and demoralization” [old Roman axiom, eternally applicable]
Carbs and team are desperately trying to fix Ovi and Kuzy. Can’t be done unless Ovi and Kuzy decide to fix themselves.
So Canada lost at the WJC. I wonder if they could have used another player. I dunno, like….Andrew Cristal?!?
#3 Jensen healthy-scratch last game. Tonight #57 TvR healthy-scratch vs. PIT. Can Mitch Love be a healthy-scratch? He’s the D coach. D hasn’t performed well this season. Plus Love is the Angel for Non-produce #45 who blocks DOZENS of better players from the Caps roster. Grrrrr
Caps Fan Base kind of ornery right now. I’m one. PIT team is red-hot at the moment … due for a fall or regression to the mean. Caps are just the team NOT to do it
Jensen was not a healthy scratch last game he is a healthy scratch for tonight’s game. TVR played last game and is playing tonight. Did you watch the last game or read this article?
Bad Defense I think not – 1 we have the lowest scoring in the league and we are 4 points out from 2nd in metro –
2- yes we have put some bad performances but at least 90 % of the games they are in it
3- McMichael and Protas are showing you that we can draft and build a good farm system that will replace the old guard
4- I was all for getting rid of Mantha and see how stupid i would be
5- if you told me that we would be 4 points out i would take it in a heart beat
Postive thought please our guys need all the help they can get
Okay lets come out play hard and win this tonight!!!! Are you guys ready!!!!!!
Some perspective for everyone, Kuemper has given up 10 goals in his last two games.
Reaching some milestones tonight…
Worst home record in the Metropolitan Division: Only 8 wins in 19 home games, tied with the Columbus Blue Jackets for the lowest winning percentage (.421).
Fifth-worst goal differential in the NHL: -29, only “outdone” by the Montreal Canadiens, Arizona Coyotes, Ottawa Senators, and Chicago Blackhawks.
Three seasons in a row without a 10-game winning streak: The last time they achieved this feat was in the 2020-21 season.
Second-longest current point streak without a win in the NHL: Eight games (last win on December 23rd). Only the Anaheim Ducks have a longer active streak (10 games).
Evgeny Kuznetsov: Only 18 points (5 goals, 13 assists) in 32 games, his lowest point total at this point in a season since 2015-16.
Nicklas Backstrom: Out for the season with a hip injury, a major blow to the team’s offensive production. GMBM still has not lifted a finger to replace him.
Tom Wilson: Only 6 goals in 33 games, well below his average of 23 goals per season over the past three years. So glad we signed that contract.
Darcy Kuemper’s recent struggles: , he’s given up 17 goals in his last 5 games, contributing to the team’s defensive woes.
Records (not good ones):
Tied franchise record for most consecutive losses under a head coach: Five games, matching Peter Laviolette’s streak in 2016.
Worst first half of the season since 2013-14: With 33 points in 35 games, they’re on pace for their lowest point total in a full season since 2008-09.
LETS GO CAPS!!!!!
Is everyone excited!!!!!
“Capitals Travel To Pittsburgh To Face Penguins In Key Metro Showdown that No One Will Get to See. Thanks Hulu!”
hmmmm thats why the games not on my tv yet…thank you! F Hulu and ESPN
I’m more excited for this game now that I have realized that I don’t actually have to waste time watching it
Its never a good thing when the coach has more good things to say about the team his team is playing than the team he coaches, in pre game pressers.
Lots of NHL teams looking for goalies. Let’s start with G35. Been reliable as a Rain Dance this season. Package a trade