Washington Capitals: Game 4 Preview in Carolina
Tonight’s a big one in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes square off in Game 4.
If the Washington Capitals win tonight, they’ll be able to close out the series against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday night. If the Hurricanes win, it’ll be a brand new series at 2-2. So basically, the Capitals will either be in the driver’s seat or in a tight series by the end of the night.
Game 3 didn’t go well for the Capitals in any regard, and with some lineup changes, they’re hoping to reverse the result after an embarrassing Game 3 loss.
Coach Todd Reirden flipped the lines up a little bit, and the first line will be Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom and T.J. Oshie. Jakub Vrana, Evgeny Kuznetosv and Tom Wilson will man the second line and Andre Burakovsky will bump to the third line to skate with Lars Eller and Brett Connolly.
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Reirden is hoping the new lines will produce some scoring not only in the top six, but specifically the bottom lines as well. The new third line hasn’t scored an even strength goal yet this series — Eller has an empty net goal — and the fourth line hasn’t registered a point. On that fourth line, Travis Boyd will slide in for Chandler Stephenson.
For the Hurricanes, Patrick Brown and Saku Maenalanen are expected to fill in for an injured Andrei Svechnikov and Micheal Ferland. Both of those two will slide in on the fourth forward line.
Svechnikov and Ferland’s loss could be incredibly damaging for the Hurricanes roster. They totaled 37 goals in the regular season, and Svechnikov will have to battle through concussion protocol. If they’re smart about it, which they appear to be, he might not play the rest of the series. At least until Game 6 or 7.
In net, the Hurricanes will stick with Petr Mrazek fresh off a shutout — though he didn’t have to do very much in Game 3. He has a .897 save percentage in the series, compared to Braden Holtby‘s .902 save percentage.
Expect the Capitals to give the Hurricanes a push, and likely a significant one, in the first period. How the Hurricanes respond could determine Game 4, and perhaps even more than that.
Next. Keys to a Capitals Game 4 Victory. dark
Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. You can catch the game locally on NBC Sports Washington. If you’re a Capitals fan outside the D.C. market, you can catch the game on the NBC Sports Network.