Michal Kempny appears likely to be a healthy scratch against the Philadelphia Flyers this Wednesday as head coach Todd Reirden continues to experiment with his defensive pairs. For much of the season, Kempny skated with John Carlson on the first pair.
Kempny’s exit means Jonas Siegenthaler will remain in the lineup while Radko Gudas will get a jersey again.
Tuesday, Ilya Kovlachuk took the ice for the first time at MedStar Capitals Iceplex after being acquired from the Montreal Canadiens for a third-round pick.
During the Capitals’ morning skate, head coach Todd Reirden placed Kovalchuk on the third line right wing, bumping Richard Panik out of the spot. Kovalchuk skated with Carl Hagelin and Lars Eller.
The Russian forward will make his Capitals debut tonight against the Winnipeg Jets. Alex Ovechkin will be honored pregame for becoming the eighth player in NHL history to score 700 goals.
Losers of five of their last six games, Ilya Samsonov (16-4-1) will get the start in goal on Saturday against the New Jersey Devils. Saturday will mark Samsonov’s 23rd birthday.
Braden Holtby (21-13-5), who has been spectacular lately, will get the nod against the first-place Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Washington Capitals’ newest acquisition, Brenden Dillon, participated in his first practice with the team, Thursday morning.
Dillon, who joined the Capitals from the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday, was matched on the first pairing with John Carlson. The 29-year-old pivot will make his Capitals debut tonight against the Montreal Canadiens.
Jonas Siegenthaler was the odd D-man out.
By Donya Abramo and Ian Oland 3 months ago
Evgeny Kuznetsov fully practiced with his Capitals teammates on Sunday, but he will not play Monday against the Vegas Golden Knights, per head coach Todd Reirden.
It will be Kuzy’s third-straight game missed due to an upper-body injury.
After watching his team absorb a 7-2 shellacking from the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday, Todd Reirden is making some changes to the Capitals lineup – albeit they are subtle.
Radko Gudas, who has played all 55 games this season, will be a healthy scratch for the first time in his Capitals career. The benching allows rookie Martin Fehervary to continue his audition before the trade deadline while Reirden can continue experimenting with the defense pairings. Three different defensemen (Jonas Siegenthaler, Nick Jensen, and now Gudas) have sat in the last three different games to accommodate Marty in the lineup.
Fehervary scored his first NHL point on Saturday, a secondary assist on an Evgeny Kuznetsov goal.
The Washington Capitals will keep their flipped lines together from the third period of Tuesday’s 4-2 victory over the Los Angeles Kings. Capitals head coach Todd Reirden threw TJ Oshie on the first line and bumped Tom Wilson down to the second. It paid immediate dividends. After failing to register a shot through the game’s first two periods, Alex Ovechkin scored on the first one he had, a brilliant pass from Oshie in the corner. Ovi would add two more in the next 4:34 to score the first natural hat trick of his career.
Reirden kept the lines together this week during practice and this morning made a change to the defensive pairings.
The Washington Capitals will play the Montreal Canadiens north of the border tonight. It’ll be the Capitals’ first game since their bye week began eight days ago.
Alex Ovechkin will not suit up against the Canadiens and serve a one-game suspension due to skipping the 2020 All-Star Game. Ovechkin opted instead to play against division-rival, New York Islanders, two Saturdays ago and scored a hat trick in the game.
According to the Washington Post’s Samantha Pell, Richard Panik will replace Ovechkin on the first line while Travis Boyd will slide into third line duty. Reirden will keep his second and fourth lines together.
Jakub Vrana is getting a special teams promotion that may take his numbers into the next stratosphere.
Vrana, who has 19 goals this season – all at even strength, replaced Evgeny Kuznetsov on the Capitals’ first powerplay unit Friday during practice.
NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti posted the details.
By Ian Oland 5 months ago
Nicklas Backstrom will miss his sixth straight game with an undisclosed upper-body injury.
Tuesday, during the morning skate, Backstrom was an extra forward indicating he would not get a jersey tonight.
