The Washington Capitals took the ice at MedStar Capitals Iceplex on Wednesday for the first time without Nicklas Backstrom this season. Backstrom, one of the team’s alternate captains, announced earlier in the day that he would be taking a leave of absence from the team due to his ongoing hip injury issues.
Given that sad news, a lineup spot down the middle of the ice has opened up and the NHL schedule does not stop so it needs to be filled.
Head coach Spencer Carbery gave the first indication of who could take that spot at practice on Monday, Connor McMichael, and followed that up with a full set of lines on Wednesday that left no further questions about the young forward’s involvement.
Here is how the team lined up via Monumental Sports Network’s Tarik El-Bashir.
Ovechkin-Strome-Wilson
Milano-Kuznetsov-Oshie
Mantha-McMichael-Phillips
Malenstyn-Lapierre-Protas
Fehervary-Carlson
Sandin-TvR
Haman Aktell-Jensen
Alexeyev-Johansen
Kuemper
Lindgren
McMichael has officially taken hold of the Capitals’ third-line center spot and is set to line up against the New York Islanders on Thursday in his natural position for the first time this season. The 22-year-old former first-round draft pick has been one of the Capitals’ top performers at five-on-five through eight games.
In a per 60 minutes individual setting among Capitals forwards, McMichael ranks third in shot attempts (14.1), second in expected goals (0.94), third in scoring chances (9.4), and second in high-danger chances (4.7). While his boxcar stats, two goals and one assist, aren’t jumping off the statsheet, McMichael has still drawn a ton of praise from Carbery to start the year.
“I have liked his game a lot this year,” Carbery said last Saturday. “I noticed him again tonight. I’ve noticed him quite a bit throughout the year… He’s making way more plays. He probably, we were talking about it as a staff today, you could argue, with his looks – if you just looked at his scoring chances for in six, seven games, he’s probably had 12 Grade A’s. Like Grade A, him and the goaltender.
“He could potentially have six, seven, eight goals – no problem. I’m not talking B chances. I’m talking right on top of the goaltender. He had one the other night in New Jersey. He scored obviously. But he put himself into those spots.”
McMichael will line up between Anthony Mantha and Matthew Phillips in a position that both Carbery and general manager Brian MacLellan expected him to eventually take although perhaps not this soon.
“I think he’s ready,” MacLellan said during the preseason. “He’ll probably start off in different positions. He might be playing wing to start but eventually we’re going to get him to center at some point. I don’t know the timeframe on it. He had a good year last year – really happy about his progress.”
“I think we just always envision Connor will play there at some point,” Carbery said Monday. “Whether that’s next game, 10 games, next season. He’s a natural centerman. He’s done a really good job on the walls and working at winger-specific stuff but he also needs to stay sharp for when the time comes for when we do need him to play the middle. That’s his natural position and I’m sure we find him back there at some point.”
On the top line, Alex Ovechkin will stick with Dylan Strome as that connection has been the team’s best this season. Ovechkin is running at a point per game pace with eight points (2g, 6a) to start the year and Strome leads the team with his six goals. With those two on the ice at five-on-five this season (76:19 TOI), the Capitals see 62.6 percent of the shot attempts, 70.8 percent of the expected goals, 62.2 percent of the scoring chances, and 63.2 percent of the high-danger chances.
The other standout inclusions include two recent recalls from the Hershey Bears.
Hendrix Lapierre looks like he’ll get another game on the team’s fourth line alongside fellow 2023 Calder Cup champions Beck Malenstyn and Aliaksei Protas. That trio struggled against the San Jose Sharks, getting out-attempted 10 to 2 and outshot 6 to 0 at five-on-five in just under five minutes of ice time.
On the backend, Hardy Haman Aktell appears to have won himself another game ahead of Alex Alexeyev and Lucas Johansen. Haman Aktell skated 12:43 of total ice time against the Sharks and recorded his first NHL point on Strome’s marker.
Charlie Lindgren was on the ice as Darcy Kuemper’s backup. Lindgren left Monday’s practice early with an injury concern but it will apparently not be serious enough to keep him from dressing against the Islanders.
The Capitals will put their three-game winning streak on the line against New York on Thursday. The Islanders are 4-2-2 to start the season, one point above the Capitals in the Metropolitan Division standings.
Headline photo: Alan Dobbins/RMNB
