In two weeks from now the Washington Capitals will take on the Carolina Hurricanes for their home opener. Tonight, that’s the matchup for the third preseason game.
The Washington Capitals renew their rivalry with the Carolina Hurricanes with another preseason tilt. Washington defeated Carolina in the first game of the rookie tournament by a final of 10-3.
Tonight’s game will be the first of two preseason tilts between the Metropolitan Division rivals. They’ll meet in Raleigh in the final preseason game on Sunday September 29 in a game that’s apparently free admission.
The Capitals will roll out a different lineup for this one after the first round of cuts were made and the second round of cuts are looming with an off day on Sunday.
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Saturday’s game is Washington’s third and final preseason game and they’ll look to finish with a perfect record after two thrilling games. According to the game notes, the Capitals are 17-5-4 in home preseason games since 2011-12.
Monday’s win came with a game-winner from Tom Wilson in overtime against the Chicago Blackhawks. Wednesday against the Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues, Nicklas Backstrom came up clutch with a goal from downtown with seven seconds left. The Capitals will hit the road after tonight’s game for three road preseason games against these same opponents.
Monday’s lineup was youth while Wednesday the Capitals rolled out a varsity heavy lineup. Tonight you’ll see more players on the youth front as some will have one last chance to impress the coaches with the second round of cuts incoming.
The Capitals will go with Ilya Samsonov for the start in goal. Samsonov split netminding duties with Vitek Vanecek on Wednesday night. He came in during the second half of the game and stopped 12-of-13 shots. He stopped every shot he faced at even strength.
In front of Samsonov is a solid top four defense. Jonas Siegenthaler and Radko Gudas man the top. Gudas scored the other night. In the middle is Christian Djoos and Nick Jensen. Rounding out defense is Lucas Jonansen and Colby Williams.
The forwards will feature plenty of Hershey Bears standouts including Shane Gersich, Liam O’Brien, Mike Sgarbossa, and Garrett Pilon. You’ll also see Brian Pinho, second rounder Brett Leason, and Axel Jonsson-Fjallby.
The varsity squad members you’ll see is a top line featuring Carl Hagelin, Travis Boyd and Richard Panik. It could possibly be the third line on opening night. Evgeny Kuznetsov will center the second line. Puck drop is at 7 p.m. on NBC Sports Washington.