The Washington Capitals’ surprisingly poor performance this season appears to be getting them punted off national television late in the year.
Per an NHL press release on Tuesday afternoon, the Capitals’ game on April 8 against the Toronto Maple Leafs, scheduled for 7:30 pm ET at Scotiabank Arena, will now be broadcast locally on Monumental Sports Network and no longer air on TNT. In Canada, the game will still air on Sportsnet and TVA Sports.
According to MoneyPuck, the two teams are near locks to miss the playoffs as the Capitals have a 6 percent chance of making the postseason, while the Maple Leafs are at 0 percent. The Leafs also just lost superstar Auston Matthews to a season-ending injury after Radko Gudas delivered him a knee-on-knee hit.
The Buffalo Sabres’ matchup against the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden will replace Caps-Leafs on the network. The 41-20-6 Sabres (88 points) lead the Atlantic Division, and are battling the Carolina Hurricanes (90 points) for the top seed in the Eastern Conference. Since December 9, Buffalo has posted a 30-6-2 record (.816 point percentage), the best mark in the NHL during that span, jumping from last in the Eastern Conference to first place in their division.
The league also announced that the 7 pm PT Anaheim Ducks vs San Jose Sharks game on April 1 will now begin at 6 pm PT/9 pm ET and will be broadcast exclusively on TNT, giving Capitals fans an opportunity to see John Carlson play for his new team. Meanwhile, the St. Louis Blues vs Los Angeles Kings game scheduled for 6 pm PT at Crypto.com Arena will now be broadcast locally on FDSNMW (St. Louis) and FDSNW (Los Angeles).
