The Washington Capitals’ last extended road trip of 2018 ends tonight as the Blue Jackets welcome them to exotic, tropical Columbus, Ohio. The Caps and the Blooj sit just one point apart at the top of the Metro standings, so the winner of this one will also be your division leader.

The puck will drop at 7 PM, at which point you will be at the mercy of Chris for game coverage. Put your TV on NBCSWA or  synchronize your smart device to this here link for streaming action.

Record	16-10-2	16-9-3
Shot Attempt %	49.6%	48.4%
PDO	100.8	102.4
Power Play	16.3%	26.1%
Penalty Kill	77.6%	76.7%

Projected Lines

By way of Isabelle of WaPo, here’s what we’ll see tonight.

Ovechkin – Backstrom – Burakovsky
Vrana – Kuznetsov – Connolly
Stephenson – Eller – DSP
Jaskin – Dowd – Boyd

Kempny – Carlson
Orlov – Niskanen
Siegenthaler – Bowey

Holtby

Esports Corner

The Overwatch League has announced rosters for all the new expansion teams, which includes DC’s franchise, the Washington Justice. The centerpiece of the lineup is main tank Janus, but they’ve also added damage player Ado from last season’s winless Shanghai Dragons and two North American players — Fahzix and Stratus, both from PA.

It’s an interesting lineup, cobbled together from other team’s castoffs and minor-league Contenders teams. Head coach Wizardhyeong will have his work cut out for him. That said, I’ve followed Fahzix for a few years, and I think he’s a special player. I hope they can find some chemistry.

Overwatch League season 2 starts in February.

Image: Overwatch League

Storylines

• Tom Wilson will miss his second game to a concussion. Christian Djoos will be a healthy scratch so that Jonas Siegenthaler can play. Meanwhile, Riley Barber was called up but is unlikely to play unless some forward is unwell.
• Blue Jackets coach Johnny Torts has the flu.
• Goalie Pheonix Copley scored his first NHL point.
• Ovi hit yet another milestone. He’s the most shooty guy ever, imo.
• Pat imagined what the Seattle expansion draft could mean for the Caps of the future.

Peter’s Favorite Book of 2018

I suck at reading books as they come out, but the sorta recent book I’ve liked the most this year is Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders, which came out last year. It’s an odd book. It’s experimental historical fiction — imagining what it was like for Lincoln to lose his son in 1862, and more surreally what it was like for WIllie to be lost. The style can be jarring. Some sections are quotes from non-fiction Lincoln histories; others are transcripts of ghosts recounting the events. The structure is daunting and maybe a little arch, but the emotion under it is powerful — maybe too powerful. It took me a few tries to actually finish this book; it was so moving.

Full RMNB Coverage of Caps at Jackets

Headline photo: Jay LaPrete