The Washington Capitals are ready to get back to game action after another three-day break between matchups. They’ll host the Philadelphia Flyers at Capital One Arena on Wednesday night, the first half of a back-to-back.
After a disappointing loss to the Los Angeles Kings last week, the Capitals put together one of their better overall performances of the young season, winning 4-3 in overtime against the Buffalo Sabers on Saturday. They’ll look to make it two wins in a row against a Flyers team that sits at the bottom of the Metropolitan Division after a poor 3-7-4 start to the 2026-27 campaign.
“I think when you break down their team, they’ve got a little bit of Buffalo in them,” Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery said. “Really, really good players in tight spaces with their skating and their puck skills. The transition, speed on the rush, and ability to break you down one-on-one. It looks like they’re attacking the net a little bit more, getting to the inside, and shooting the puck more often. I know that was a point of contention early in the year for them.”
The Flyers will be wrapping up a back-to-back of their own after hosting the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday night. Philadelphia dropped the contest 4-3 in overtime after a three-goal comeback in the second and third periods. The Flyers have lost two in a row after a three-game winning streak ended a 0-6-3 start to the year.
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Logan Thompson appears good to go
The Capitals should have their number-one netminder back, as Logan Thompson was the first goalie off the ice at the team’s optional morning skate. Thompson has been back at practice since Saturday morning after suffering a lower-body injury that kept him out of the win over Buffalo.
“We’ll see,” Carbery said. “I’ll talk to Serbs (head athletic trainer Jason Serbus) in a little bit here and get an all-clear or figure out what the game plan is for the next two days.”
In his career against the Flyers, Thompson is 4-1-1 with a 2.84 goals-against average and an .896 save percentage.
Jack St. Ivany in for Capitals debut
The Capitals will see defenseman Jack St. Ivany make his debut after claiming him off waivers from the Winnipeg Jets last week. The 27-year-old blueliner will be paired with Cole Hutson on the team’s third defense pairing, sending Dylan McIlrath back to the press box.
“(Looking for) just solid, reliable minutes,” Carbery said. “Nothing other than that. Just defend well. He’s a big body, good stick. If he gets an opportunity to get on the penalty kill, give us some good minutes there. Move pucks well and defend well.”
Flyers hear more harsh words from their head coach
Philadelphia’s head coach Rick Tocchet hasn’t been happy with his team this season, and that continued after they fell to Columbus on Tuesday night. The one-time Capitals forward laid into his players after they gave up three goals to the Blue Jackets in the first period and couldn’t fully recover to earn two points.
“Every game, you have a learning lesson,” Tocchet told The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jackie Spiegel. “But I can’t keep coming here, on the mic, saying learning lesson, learning lesson. It’s a broken record. I’m just disappointed, like I said, the first, and then this overtime. Like, some of the guys are – I don’t know what they’re doing. We had a meeting about it. We sent them video on it. It’s all puck possession. It’s being smart, and we give them two 2-on-o’s. That’s unacceptable.”
Matvei Michkov is starting to break out
After 14 games, only two Flyers, Trevor Zegras (12) and Matvei Michkov (10), have hit double digits in points. Michkov has been red hot recently, recording eight points (6g, 2a) in his last six outings, including two separate two-goal performances against the Colorado Avalanche and Anaheim Ducks.
“He’s getting in and around the net a little bit,” Carbery said. “I could be just throwing this out there because I don’t watch him close enough, but he looks like he’s moving really, really well, like puck possession in the offensive zone. It’s only a matter of time with guys like that. They’re going to find ways to score and find ways to figure out the league. They’re that talented, and I think it’s only a matter of time before he’s a very, very effective goal scorer.”
Projected lineup
Capitals lines
With St. Ivany in and Thompson likely starting, here’s how the Capitals should look.
Flyers lines
Philadelphia’s likely lineup based on their game against the Blue Jackets.
Fun factoids
- Alex Ovechkin has scored 11 goals in his last 15 games against the Flyers. His 54 career goals against the Flyers are the second most all-time, trailing only Sidney Crosby (60).
- The Capitals have won eight of their last 10 games against the Flyers and haven’t lost on home ice to Philadelphia since January 14, 2023. Ovechkin scored the lone goal in that 3-1 loss, which also featured names like Nicklas Backstrom, TJ Oshie, and Evgeny Kuznetsov still in Washington’s lineup.
- Philadelphia has yet to beat another Metropolitan Division team this season, losing to the Carolina Hurricanes (2x), Pittsburgh Penguins, New Jersey Devils, and Columbus Blue Jackets.
Puck drop is set for 7:30 pm. The matchup will be nationally televised on TNT.
