ARLINGTON, VA — The Washington Capitals will host their last game before the holiday break on Tuesday night, but they aren’t yet certain who will take the ice.
Head coach Spencer Carbery told reporters after morning skate that multiple players would be game-time decisions against the New York Rangers as the team battles both injury and illness.
“Everything lineup-wise, I can confirm Logan Thompson will start,” Carbery said. “Everything else, a ton of question marks…We’ve got some guys — maintenance, dealing with some minor injury stuff, and sickness. So, got a lot of, everything will be game-time.”
Ryan Leonard’s status remains up in the air as of Tuesday morning, per Carbery. Leonard has missed the last seven games since sustaining a shoulder and face injury on December 5: the Capitals initially estimated he would be out three to four weeks but labeled him out day-to-day on Saturday. He returned to practice last week and was a full participant in Tuesday’s morning skate.
Carbery said he would know more about whether Leonard could play after conferring with Capitals head athletic trainer Jason Serbus.
“Haven’t talked to Serbs yet, so Leno has not been cleared,” he said.
Also among those game-time decisions is Tom Wilson, who did not take part in the Capitals’ optional morning skate. Wilson currently leads the team both goals and total scoring, with 34 points (17g, 17a) in 36 games.
After Tuesday’s game, the Capitals will have a three-day break for the holidays before returning to action against the New Jersey Devils on Saturday. Asked if the upcoming time off tempted him to give borderline players more time to rest, Carbery quipped, “Not if we want to win a game today.”
Still, he did acknowledge that the break affected the team’s calculations.
“Yes. There is, I wouldn’t say it’s tempting. It’s more about, does it make sense for their long-term health to be able to give an extra two days?” he said. “(That) would be what Serbs and his team are considering. And they do a great job of that, of weighing, is it better to let someone have an extra two days, versus play and then have three days, and I leave that up to them.
“But, you know, we need to win hockey games. So it’s not like we’re punting, or just going to, ‘Ah, if you don’t feel that great, just take tonight off.’ That’s not the approach.”
The Capitals also had some special visitors at Tuesday’s skate, with Hershey Bears Ilya Protas, Bogdan Trineyev, Alexander Suzdalev, and Eriks Mateiko all stopping by MedStar Capitals Iceplex to say hello. Hershey’s last game before the holiday break came on Sunday, a 3-1 loss to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, and the team will not play again until December 27.
