Mark your calendars Washington Capitals fans!
After a 142 day pause, the National Hockey League will drop the puck with a five game slate of Stanley Cup Qualifiers on Saturday August 1. The Washington Capitals will begin their quest back to the Stanley Cup Finals with a Round Robin playoff on August 3 against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The Round Robin will continue on August 6th against the Philadelphia Flyers and conclude on August 8 against the Boston Bruins. Game times are still to be determined but you’ll likely be able to catch the games on NBC Sports Washington.
The NHL and the NHL Player’s Association ratified a four year extension in their collective bargaining agreement through the 2025-26 season and a Return to Play Plan. The agreements pave the way for a resumption of the 2019-20 season in the goals of crowning a Stanley Cup champion by early October.
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When competition resumes 12 Eastern Conference teams will head to Toronto while the 12 Western Conference teams will play in Edmonton. Those will be the sites for the first two rounds while Edmonton will host the Conference Final and Stanley Cup Final. Each team is permitted to bring a maximum of 52 individuals into the secure zone including 31 players.
We don’t know the puck drop times for the three Caps games but we do know that we’ll be treated to hockey games all day long. The game times for the contests in Toronto will be noon, 4 p.m., and 8 p.m. Eastern Time to maximize the viewing experience for fans nationwide.
The Caps swept the season series against the Lightning with their last meeting coming on Dec. 21. The Bruins are also another foe the Caps haven’t seen yet in 2020 with their last contest coming in December as well. The Caps took two of those three games against the Bruins.
The one opponent that has given the Caps a challenge is none other than the red hot Flyers but just how hot will they be after a long cool off period since the last time anyone’s stepped on the ice?
The Caps have lost three of their last four contests against the Flyers including two on home ice but with no fans in the stands the playing surface is level.
Training camp will open on July 13 and on the 26th teams will travel to the hub city. Exhibition games will take place from July 28-30th. Games will start on August 1 with the first Caps game beginning two days later and then finally on August 10 will be the second phase of the NHL Draft Lottery.
It’s all looking good that hockey is coming back and we can’t wait to be along for the ride.