ARLINGTON, VA — Charlie Lindgren will get back in net against the New York Rangers on Saturday night. The game will hold extra personal significance for Lindgren, who will face his brother Ryan for the first time in his NHL career.
Head coach Spencer Carbery confirmed Saturday morning that Lindgren would start in a second-straight game, praising the goaltender’s recent play.
“I just think he’s played well for us throughout, Carbery said. “I think he’s earned the opportunity to play tonight, Saturday night against the Rangers, top team in the league.”
Carbery added that the family connection did not influence his decision. Lindgren’s play this season has simply earned him more starts.
“Nothing to do with the brother stuff, but when I heard that I was kind of surprised that he hadn’t played against them before,” he said. “But a good opportunity. It’s one of the elite teams in the league.”
Though the Lindgrens’ parents did not have enough notice to come down for the game, Charlie hosted his brother for dinner Friday night and was looking forward to the on-ice reunion.
“I know he’s excited,” Lindgren said, per NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti. “I’m excited. It’s a really cool opportunity, obviously. It’s something that we both definitely don’t take for granted. It’s a pretty cool family thing.”
He later added, “If he scored on me, that would probably be the death of me, I think. That’s that not a joke. That would torment me.”
Saturday will mark just the second time this fall that Lindgren starts in back-to-back games. After entering the year as the presumed backup, Lindgren has been the Capitals’ best goaltender this season. In eight starts, he holds a 5-2-1 record, a sparkling .924 save percentage, and per MoneyPuck, is top-10 in the league in goals saved above expected (9.0).
That level of performance has earned Lindgren a larger role on the team, splitting starts with Darcy Kuemper in the last 10 contests. Carbery said Thursday that he was determining the team’s starting goaltender on a “game-to-game” basis, though an illness kept Lindgren out of at least one game on the team’s recent road trip.
“Chuckie got sick and that sort of threw off kind of the way things worked on the road trip and gave a couple extra starts or potentially one, two starts where Charlie wasn’t able to go,” Carbery said then, “but he’ll go back in the net (against Dallas).”
Lindgren will face another formidable opponent in the Rangers after taking a loss to the Stars. New York leads the NHL in points percentage and sit just two points back of the Vegas Golden Knights with three games in hand. Meanwhile, the Capitals’ struggling offense will go up against one of the league’s best goaltenders in Igor Shesterkin, potentially giving Lindgren little room for error.
Headline photo: Katie Adler/RMNB
