I thought about having a quiet, calm Tuesday…but then I realized the Capitals and the Penguins are back at it again tonight. I think a quiet and calm game between these two teams would be a cause for concern.
At any rate, the bigger news that you should know before this evening’s showdown is that Coach Laviolette has decided to shake up the lines! You’ll notice the return of top line Tom Wilson, the shift of TJ Oshie to the third line, and the spring of Daniel Sprong up to the second line.
Puck drop is at 7PM EST. I personally recommend that you stream it and hang out with us. Recap will come your way courtesy of Peter Hassett.
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|---|---|---|
| Record | 1 – 2 – 0 | 2 – 0 – 1 |
| Shot Attempt % | 54.8% | 52.9% |
| PDO | 90.7 | 103.3 |
| Power Play | 15.4% | 33.3% |
| Penalty Kill | 69.2% | 92.3% |
Projected Lines
Line changes were mentioned in the intro, but check out the below. It also looks like Vanecek will be in goal:
Ovechkin – Backstrom – Wilson
Vrana – Kuznetsov – Sprong
Panik – Eller – Oshie
Hagelin – Dowd – Hathaway
Orlov – Carlson
Dillon – Schultz
Chara – Jensen
Vanecek
The Season
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1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
1/30 | 2/1 | 3/3 | 3/5 | 4/8 | 4/10 | 4/18 | 4/20 |
 |
2/27 | 3/1 | 3/7 | 3/9 | 3/25 | 3/26 | 4/2 | 4/4 |
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2/7 | 2/9 | 3/11 | 3/13 | 4/17 | 4/27 | 5/7 | 5/8 |
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1/26 | 1/28 | 3/15 | 3/16 | 4/1 | 4/6 | 4/22 | 4/24 |
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🤷 | 1/19 | 2/14 | 2/16 | 2/23 | 2/25 | 4/29 | 5/1 |
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2/4 | 2/20 | 2/21 | 3/19 | 3/28 | 3/30 | 5/3 | 5/5 |
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🌮 | 🌮 | 1/22 | 1/24 | 2/11 | 2/13 | 4/13 | 4/15 |
Legend: 🌮 = win; 🚽 = loss; 🤷 = OTL
Wear a mask
Canes and Preds has been postponed. Canes have two positive COVID tests. Crossing my fingers for no more positive cases and for a speedy recovery.
NHL statement on tonight’s @Canes vs. @PredsNHL game. pic.twitter.com/eVEXIOdCV8
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) January 19, 2021
Storylines
- Karl Alzner has joined the NBC Sports Washington pregame!
- The Caps will wear their Reverse Retro jerseys 4 times this year.
- This is an amazing rendition of “O, Canada”. Just in case you feel like tearing up today.
- Last game was a close one. Take a look at the morning after numbers to catch up!
- Leave our random-ass bird mascot alone.
- If I was on the Washington Capitals, I would also make sure that my superstition includes holding hands with Nick Backstrom or Jakub Vrana.
- The Capitals debuted Willie O’Ree equality helmet stickers. They will be worn league-wide until the end of February.
- Dylan Larkin and Zach Werenski had quite a scuffle the other day. Typical childhood best friend stuff.
- Alex Prewitt is a senior writer for Sports Illustrated and he is very, very good. His recent story is titled, “The Fight Over Hockey’s Racial Reckoning” and I strongly recommend you give it a read:
Fourteen months ago, when Akim Aliu tweeted about Bill Peters, he hoped for a reckoning in hockey. Since then, he (and his player coalition, the HDA) have grown more frustrated than ever with the NHL and its approach to race.
In this month’s @SInow: https://t.co/ZefiSrYBM2
— Alex Prewitt (@alex_prewitt) January 19, 2021
Be Safe
I’m from the DC area, so obviously I’ve been getting updates from friends about what it’s been like these last few days and I wanted to be sure to pass along the sentiment to you all as well. Just taking a quick little second to tell those of you that are currently located in Washington, DC area that I am thinkin’ of you! Things are super tense (on top of a pandemic smh), so take it easy. Please be safe and look out for each other. Love you all a bunch.
Tonight the National Mall is covered in upwards of 200,000 flags to represent the people who could not attend the inauguration of President-Elect Joe Biden. @nbcwashington pic.twitter.com/1JJM4YdEmn
— Haleigh Hoffman (@HaleighHoffman) January 19, 2021
RMNB Coverage of Caps at Penguins
Headline photo: Elizabeth Kong/RMNB
