Washington Capitals: Top 5 road games to look forward to in 2019-20
The hockey offseason has reached the dog days but there’s plenty of time to plan out a Washington Capitals road trip.
The 2019-20 Washington Capitals season features road stops in some of the best cities in both America and Canada. There’s plenty of places to see and things to do in each town plus you could even meet some other fellow Caps fans.
These five road games listed are based on both the matchup on the ice and/or the attractions that make the city a destination to attend a road game.
The Capitals open the season in St. Louis and four of their first six games are on the road. Washington ends their first month of the season with five straight road games. It seems like a daunting task but the Capitals are just as good of a team on the road as they are at home. Last season Washington finished 24-15-2 away from Capital One Arena.
The Capitals close out the month of December with five of their last eight games rounding out the 2019 calendar year coming away from D.C. That stretch includes stops in Tampa Bay, New Jersey, Boston, and Carolina. Yikes.
Here are the top five Capitals road games.
#5 at Toronto Maple Leafs Oct. 29
This contest marks the final game of the five-game road trip that closes out the month of October. These games between the Washington Capitals and Toronto Maple Leafs have had several memorable games against each other.
The matchup really took surface during the 2017 first round playoff series that went six games. Tom Wilson and Marcus Johansson were each difference makers in that series that saw the Capitals come out on top.
The Capitals played host to the Maple Leafs the next year in the Stadium Series in Annapolis, Maryland. Evgeny Kuznetsov, Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, John Carlson and Jakub Vrana each scored for the Capitals in a 5-2 win.
Last season the Capitals dropped two of the three games and will look to improve against the Leafs. Their lone victory came in Toronto in February.
Washington scored twice in the second period first on a power play from Ovechkin then Brett Connolly doubled the lead. After the Maple Leafs got a goal back, the Capitals responded with a Wilson shorthanded goal to go on to win 3-2.
Fans that make the trip up to Canada should check out the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto. A must-visit for any hockey fan.
#4 at New Jersey Devils Dec. 20
This game marks the heart of this final eight-game stretch to close out the month of December and is the first of a back-to-back. The Washington Capitals will play host to the Tampa Bay Lightning back in Washington the next night after this game.
The New Jersey Devils had one of the most exciting offseasons in the NHL this summer. Winning the lottery for the second time in the last three years, they used their top draft pick to select Jack Hughes.
Hughes, Taylor Hall and Nico Hischier (2017’s top pick) wasn’t enough. The Devils traded Steven Santini, Jeremy Davies and two second rounders to the Nashville Predators in exchange for P.K. Subban. The Devils also signed Wayne Simmonds.
The Devils will be one of the most exciting teams to watch in the NHL this season, especially after the summer they’ve had. The Capitals won three out of the four games last season.
This Friday night contest at Prudential Center will be the first meeting between the Metropolitan Division rivals this season. They’ll meet again on Feb. 22 in a Saturday matinee at 1 p.m.
These games should produce a lot of high scoring and will be both must-see TV and a game worth traveling for..
#3 at Vegas Golden Knights Feb. 17
Ah yes Viva Las Vegas. The Washington Capitals head back to T-Mobile Arena, that magical place where they captured the Stanley Cup. The Vegas Golden Knights have another strong team and will be a legitimate Cup contender for the next several seasons to come.
Las Vegas is known for it’s gambling, entertainment, and other attractions. This game happens to fall on Presidents’ Day weekend at the conclusion of a three-game west coast trip that begins in Colorado and continues in Arizona before wrapping up in Vegas.
The Golden Knights swept the Capitals in their two-game series in 2017-18 before the Washington went on to defeat them in the Stanley Cup Final in five games. Vegas took the Game 1 opener on their home ice before the Capitals responded with a huge Game 2 victory to even the series thanks in large part to a game-winning goal from Brooks Orpik and a series momentum shifting save from Braden Holtby.
Eight days later they were back in the desert for Game 5, a back and fourth thriller that saw the Capitals rally from a 3-2 third period deficit to win their first Stanley Cup.
June 7, 2018 will forever be a special day in the hearts of Capitals fans everywhere.
Last season the two teams split, each winning on their home ice. The game in Vegas was a memorable one for Tom Wilson and Ryan Reaves in particular so keep an eye on those two.
#2 at St. Louis Blues Oct. 2
The last two Stanley Cup champions to open the season. Just 364 days after the Washington Capitals had an emotional night of raising a Stanley Cup championship banner, now the St. Louis Blues will get their turn. Washington will once again be guests, for the third time, in a third different city.
Each team swept the other in the regular season the last two years in their Stanley Cup year. The last time the Capitals were in St. Louis was in early-January when the Blues were at the bottom of the standings. That night though sparked the beginning of their turnaround and the rest, as we all say, is history.
The Blues dominated in a 5-2 win . After the Capitals responded to an early Robert Thomas goal with two unanswered from Alex Ovechkin and Brett Connolly, the Blues responded with four straight goals and the Capitals couldn’t answer.
11 days later, the Capitals and the Blues met in the District and St. Louis played unkind to the hosts in a 4-1 win. After an Ovechkin PPG gave the Capitals a 1-0 lead, the Blues responded with four straight goals.
It was this perseverance down the second half of the regular season that served the Blues well and it carried over into defeating the Boston Bruins in seven games to win the Stanley Cup and end a 52-year drought.
#1 at Pittsburgh Penguins March 22
The Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins will meet for the fourth and final time in a Sunday noon matinee that could come down to the Metropolitan Division. It may also be a big night for the captain Alex Ovechkin depending on where he’s at in goals.
He needs just 42 for his 700th plus there’s a chance he could once again be flirting with 50 goals for the third straight season. He seems to defy age.
The Capitals went 1-2-1 last season against the Penguins, rallying to force overtime in their first meeting thanks to two third period goals 21 seconds apart by T.J. Oshie to tie the game at 6. Kris Letang won the thrilling contest in overtime.
It took until just the second game of the season last year for the Capitals and the Penguins to meet. This season, the teams won’t face-off until Super Bowl Sunday in Washington.
All four contests will be weekend afternoon games. Two in February in Washington. Two in Pittsburgh in March. Their first Pittsburgh meeting comes on Saturday March 7.
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