The Washington Capitals fell to the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday night, losing 5-3 despite a late-game comeback effort. With just two games left until their bye week, the Caps have yet to pick up a point on their Western Conference road trip, dropping their second straight in Minnesota after the St. Louis Blues shut them out Saturday.
Already past the midway mark of the season, Washington’s time is starting to run out. They currently hold a record of 22-17-6 and rank sixth place in the Metropolitan Division. Head Coach Spencer Carbery could feel those games slipping away as the year went on. After the loss, Carbery acknowledged that his team was running out of room, but still retained faith that they could turn it around.
“I genuinely believe in our leadership and they know we’re in playoff mode right now,” he said. “(They know) this is our season, and how tight, and all that stuff. If we are being realistic about playing into April and May, this is going to be the chunk that decides our season.”
Carbery previously highlighted this road trip as a key stretch for the team: so far they have failed to capitalize on it. As of Tuesday night, the Capitals sit four points out of the second Eastern Conference wild card spot behind the Detroit Red Wings, New Jersey Devils, and New York Islanders.
The Caps’ offense remains their biggest challenge: Washington’s 2.36 goals per game ranks third-last in the league ahead of only the bottom-feeding San Jose Sharks and Chicago Blackhawks. Another troubling trend has seen Washington win a disproportionate share of one-goal games despite regularly losing in blowouts, suggesting that some of the team’s moderate success could be attributed to luck.
That pattern played out on Tuesday, when the Wild managed to get five goals past the Caps’ defense and goaltender Darcy Kuemper.
Things won’t get any easier for the Caps as they try to claw their way back into the playoff picture. Per Tankathon, Washington has the toughest strength of schedule of the league (.588 points percentage) in their remaining 37 games. They’ll have fewer days off, as well: after the Capitals return from the All-Star Break, they will average one game every 2.03 days and play five back-to-backs, all including travel.
Meanwhile, the March 8 trade deadline looms ever-closer. NHL insider Elliotte Friedman suggested earlier this month that Washington could be a buyer at the deadline but would “wait to see how things develop.” If the Caps fail to rebound soon, they could instead see chunks of their roster sold for parts–Nic Dowd has already garnered trade buzz.
For now, the Capitals will turn their sights to Wednesday night’s matchup against the Colorado Avalanche, who hold a formidable home record of 18-5-0. Carbery sees that game as emblematic of Washington’s path forward.
“They’re challenging games against real good hockey teams and tomorrow is probably as difficult as the test gets, but that’s where we have to prove that we belong and we’re capable of playing past the regular season,” he said.
Before the puck dropped on Opening Night, the Capitals declared they had “something to prove,” adorning their locker room with the new mantra. The theme has come up repeatedly throughout the season, including in Carbery’s comments Tuesday night. Three months later, the season could be coming down to the wire: if the Capitals have what it takes, now is the time to prove it.
