The Washington Capitals saw one of their goaltenders pulled mid-game for just the second time this season on Wednesday night. Logan Thompson, the club’s starter against the Carolina Hurricanes, lasted just one period before exiting the crease with what the Capitals called an upper-body injury.
Charlie Lindgren finished the game for the Capitals, a 5-1 loss to the Hurricanes. Head coach Spencer Carbery was asked about his concern level regarding Thompson’s status post-game and offered a brief update.
“He’ll be reevaluated when we get back home,” Carbery said.
Thompson had given up three goals on 12 shots in the first frame before Lindgren took over. The 28-year-old backstop didn’t suffer an apparent injury but did take a hard shot to the mask from Hurricanes defenseman Sean Walker, which caused a stoppage in play.
The Capitals’ netminder also took a spill when Taylor Hall attempted to move between him and the net during a Hurricanes power play. Hall collided with Thompson and the net, knocking the latter off its pegs.
Thompson has struggled in net since the beginning of March. Despite posting a 6-3-1 record, he has a 3.20 goals-against average and a .876 save percentage in 10 appearances. Per MoneyPuck, he has fallen below 30 goals saved above expected (26.0) and is now nearing Andrei Vasilevskiy (23.7) for third place. Connor Hellebuyck leads the category at 35.3.
After traveling home from Raleigh, the Capitals will hold a morning skate at MedStar Capitals Iceplex on Friday before taking on the Chicago Blackhawks later that night.
