Washington Capitals goaltender Ilya Samsonov will neither play nor be on the bench for the team’s game against the Buffalo Sabres Thursday night.
Samsonov missed the team’s morning skate and is out day-today with an upper-body injury.
By Ian Oland 3 days ago
The Washington Capitals traded Jakub Vrana on Monday. The deal has not just been a difficult deal for many Capitals fans to process. It’s also been hard for many players.
“He’s a nice person,” Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan said during his press conference.
Despite only being 25, Vrana has been a presence in Washington for nearly a decade. First drafted in 2013, Vrana dazzled during development camps with his stickhandling, put up tantalizing numbers abroad and in the AHL, and eventually became a full-time NHL player in 2017-18. That year, Vrana helped the Capitals win their first-ever Stanley Cup, scoring in the championship-clinching Game Five. His championship tattoos and Instagram Stories from the celebration are the stuff of legend.
Vrana’s optimism, talent, and creativity grabbed our attention. His kindness and friendship with his teammates will make him hard to forget.
By Ian Oland 5 days ago
Vitek Vanecek will start his 27th game of the season against the Buffalo Sabres, Friday.
Capitals head coach Peter Laviolette announced the news in his pregame press conference two hours before puck drop.
Caps goalie Vitek Vanecek is marked as the losing goaltender in Tuesday night’s 1-0 loss to the New York Islanders. Sure, that’s accurate from a statistical perspective, but it overlooks what a wizard he was in that game.
That was one of the finest jobs an NHL goalie has done all season.
By Peter Hassett 2 weeks ago
Alex Ovechkin, who missed practice earlier in the week with a lower-body injury, is expected to play against the New Jersey Devils, Thursday night. Capitals head coach Peter Laviolette announced the news after the team’s optional morning skate.
The team, however, will have to go once again without Lars Eller. The third-line center will miss his fifth straight game due to a lower-body injury.
Lars Eller participated in the Capitals’ optional skate on Friday, but left early.
Later, Peter Laviolette announced that Eller would sit out against the New York Rangers, missing his third straight game and fourth of the last five.
The Capitals will instead roll with their 11 forward/seven defensemen lineup again.
Vitek Vanecek just clean-sheeted the lowly Buffalo Sabres.
The Czech rookie made 23 saves in the Capitals’ 6-0 victory. The loss is the Sabres’ 17th in 27 games this season. They are 0-9-1 in their last 10 games.
With Lars Eller out, the Washington Capitals will suit up with 11 forwards and seven defensemen against the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center on Monday night.
Trevor van Riemsdyk will be the the team’s seventh defenseman, but it’s unclear if he will get The Jonas Siegenthaler Treatment or not. The game will mark van Riemsdyk’s eighth as a Capital since signing over the offseason.
By Ian Oland 1 month ago
Ilya Samsonov contracted COVID-19 in mid-January and is still somewhat feeling the effects of it two months later.
Despite that, the Russian goaltender has refound the top of his game and will start against the Philadelphia Flyers Thursday night, marking only his fifth NHL start this season and his third since appearing in four games with the Hershey Bears for conditioning.
The Washington Capitals returned to the ice on Tuesday after an off day Monday. They play the New Jersey Devils Tuesday night at home.
After scoring two of the Capitals’ three goals against the Philadelphia Flyers, Peter Laviolette will keep the Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, and TJ Oshie top line together.
