ARLINGTON, VA — As the Capitals near the 10-game mark of the season, they will be without some key injured players for at least a little while longer. Head coach Spencer Carbery told reporters Saturday that sidelined center Nic Dowd and defenseman Joel Edmundson are skating again, but not ready to return to the lineup just yet.
Carbery declined to give a firm schedule for the pair’s return but seemed pleased with their progress, suggesting that both could play as early as next weekend if things went well.
“I don’t think I have a real accurate timeline,” Carbery said. “On next week, Florida, we have a few days off here once again with not playing for three days. I wouldn’t expect at this point to expect them in midweek, but then we go to that back-to-back. Might be wishful thinking, but potential. But they’ve got to get back into practice first and then I can give you more of an accurate plan.”
The Capitals will conclude a five-game homestand Wednesday against the Panthers before facing the New Jersey Devils and New York Islanders on November 10 and 11.
After playing in the first two games of the season, Dowd has missed the last two weeks with an upper-body injury. He previously missed 17 games in the 2022-23 season before undergoing core surgery over the summer. In his first media availability of Training Camp, Dowd admitted that the injury had not been fully resolved.
“Looking every day to build on the last one and not have any setbacks,” he said. “I think a lot of maintenance, a lot of rehab, a lot of warming up skating getting ready before practice. Stuff like that is probably going to follow me now for the rest of my career. Just how it works as you get a little older. It’s a tough game, so it’s kind of to be expected. I’ve been fortunate so far.”
Dowd’s fourth-line center spot is currently occupied by Hendrix Lapierre, whose most recent performance against the New York Islanders earned praise from Carbery.
“Liked his game a lot,” Carbery said. “In the nine minutes that he played, thought he had some really good sequences, some really good shifts. I talked to him yesterday that that’s exactly what he needs to do in the role that he’s in right now and to earn a little bit more trust and opportunity. So [I go] into tonight going, ‘I can trust him in a lot of different situations.’”
Edmundson, who Washington acquired from the Montreal Canadiens this summer, has yet to make his Capitals debut. He began Training Camp with the team but fractured his hand just days into it during an intrasquad scrimmage. Alex Alexeyev, Hardy Häman Aktell, and Lucas Johansen have all spent time on the third pairing in Edmundson’s absence. Though Edmundson’s possible return may make it a moot point, Carbery hopes to eventually have just one of those players fill the role.
“I think we would like to have some consistency there, especially for the right side. It’s been [Jensen] now for a little while now. I think that would help him to have some consistency there. And then also one of those guys to seize the opportunity and really take off with it. I think there’s been good moments for all three of them. Good performances, good games. But strung together consistently, we haven’t got that quite yet.
“Häman Aktell’s had some really good games. Al’s had some strong games. But really someone, and it’s not about really jumping off the page. Just being reliable, being smart, being good with defending or breakout touches, all that stuff. Absolutely, we would like that for someone to elevate themselves and really grab a hold of it.”
Though still a ways off from returning, Saturday also saw progress for offseason acquisition Max Pacioretty, who skated for the second time as he recovers from his second Achilles’ tendon tear in a year.
Headline photos: Alan Dobbins and Katie Adler/RMNB
