The Washington Capitals traveled to Detroit on no rest for the back half of a back-to-back and got smacked in the mouth by the Red Wings. The 8-3 final scoreline puts a big dent in the team’s postseason hopes after a few weeks of positive steps forward.
A loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on Friday would probably seal some things happening before the trade deadline.
- The Capitals had long stretches during this game where they simply were just along for the ride that the Red Wings were taking them on. They showed some good pushback during the second period but couldn’t find the timely finishing they’ve been getting lately, turned the puck over in very bad positions on the ice, and couldn’t buy a save from the normally very dependable Charlie Lindgren. Eight goals is the most the Capitals have given up in a single game this season. Their previous high was six which has happened six times.
- Charlie Lindgren definitely did not get a ton of help with the mistakes in front of him but from a purely statistical perspective, he also had an awful individual night. MoneyPuck says he stopped 4.48 fewer goals than expected which takes his previous top-15 mark of 8.8 goals saved above expected and plummets it down to around 28th in the NHL. One bad start doesn’t make a goaltender but it’s sure rather awful timing given the recent report of heavy interest in him from a trade standpoint.
- Ian went over some of the more in-depth percentage changes in the team’s playoff chances last night. From a pure standings look, the Capitals are now six points back of the Flyers for third in the Metro after Philly won their game on Tuesday and six points behind the Tampa Bay Lightning for the second wild card spot. The New Jersey Devils also jumped back over the Capitals after beating the San Jose Sharks out west.
Alex Ovechkin tallied his second assist of the game on Pacioretty's goal. Tonight marks Ovechkin's 10th multi-point game of the season, which is tied with Dylan Strome for the most on Washington. Ovechkin's 427 career multi-point games are the 12th most in NHL history.
— CapitalsPR (@CapitalsPR) February 28, 2024
- Hendrix Lapierre had another inspired game. All of the guys that have spent time with the dominant Hershey Bears this season seem to come up and bring some of that energy with them. Lapierre has three goals in his last two games and four points (3g, 1a) in his last three NHL outings.
- Anthony Mantha and Max Pacioretty, two pending UFAs recently involved in trade rumors, both stayed hot despite the lopsided final score. Mantha has eight points (2g, 6a) in his last seven games and Pacioretty has goals in back-to-back games and five points (2g, 3a) in his last six games.
- Three games left before the March 8 trade deadline. Two of those games come against the Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins who both have a higher points percentage than the Capitals. The other game comes against the Arizona Coyotes who do not have a win in their last 13 games.
Numbers thanks to Hockey-reference.com and NaturalStatTrick.com.
