Washington Capitals: A look at the final six games
And then there were six. Six games for the Washington Capitals until the Stanley Cup playoffs which they clinched for the seventh consecutive season.
These six games are packed with playoff teams and pesky teams on the outside looking in. They are opponents Washington shouldn’t overlook despite what their record says. The pesky teams will want to interfere the East standings and play spoilers to anyone wanting the high seeds.
We don’t know when Alex Ovechkin will return to the lineup but he did rotate in rushes at morning skate today at MedStar Capitals Iceplex. Nevertheless, we need these wins coming up.
vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
Despite Ovechkin and John Carlson taking the ice for both the optional practice yesterday and the morning skate today, head coach Peter Laviolette didn’t commit to whether or not they are playing. Both have lower body injuries and are day to day.
“We’ve got decisions to make,” said Laviolette.
Whether or not Ovi and Carly are in, it’s still a big game. With both teams tied at 69 points (nice), first place in the MassMutual East Division will be on the line.
The Caps are coming off an overtime defeat to the Penguins and will be looking for revenge on Saturday night.
at New York Rangers
Following the game on Saturday, the Caps will travel to New York to take on the Rangers in a two game series at Madison Square Garden. The Rangers have given the Caps fits all season long as the Caps are 2-4-0 against the Blueshirts this season.
The Caps dropped the first game at The Garden 4-2 on February 4. They then dropped one on the 20th on home ice by a final of 4-1. The Caps got their first win against the Rangers on March 19 in a game that saw them trail 1-0 until there were two clutch third period goals by Ovechkin.
The Caps would lose to the Rangers the next night 3-1 but would get payback on the 28th with a 5-4 win over the Rangers. Tom Wilson (twice), Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov, and T.J. Oshie all scored for the boys in red.
Their next meeting two days later resulted in a 5-2 loss to the Rangers. Like I said, these are opponents the Caps shouldn’t take lightly. Look out for Mika Zibanejad who has been known as a Caps killer including last season when he had a five goal game.
The Caps will play the Rangers on Monday and Wednesday night before coming home to wrap up the regular season.
vs. Philadelphia Flyers
Many people thought the Caps broke the Philadelphia Flyers during a stretch in March that saw Washington play their best hockey and Philly begin to collapse.
The Caps are 5-1-0 against the Flyers this season. Their lone loss came on the first meeting of the season on Super Bowl Sunday in a 7-4 defeat that saw Ovechkin score twice.
The Caps would meet them a month later with a 3-1 win in Philly that saw Ovechkin, Dmitry Orlov, and Nick Jensen scored for the Caps. They next met on March 11 as Ovechkin, Conor Sheary, Carlson, and Nic Dowd (twice) scored for the Caps in a 5-3 win.
The Caps would get a 5-4 win two nights later to complete the road sweep in Philly. Sprong, Carl Hagelin, Jensen, Ovechkin and Dowd scored for the Caps.
The Caps would come home and get a 6-1 win over the Flyers on April 13. Sheary, Wilson, Nicklas Backstrom, Hagelin, new guy Anthony Mantha, and Ovechkin scored for the Caps.
The teams last meeting came on April 17 in a 6-3 win over the Flyers. Ovechkin (twice), Orlov, Kuznetsov, Sheary and Mantha all scored for the Caps.
The Caps and Flyers meet in a back to back affair at Capital One Arena on May 7th and 8th.
vs. Boston Bruins
The Caps will wrap up the regular season against the Boston Bruins in what could be a potential first round preview. The Caps are 3-4-0 against the Bruins this season and their games so far have been entertaining.
The Caps won the first meeting 4-3 in overtime. Backstrom, Trevor van Riemsdyk, and Richard Panik all scored for the Caps in regulation while Ovechkin won the game in overtime.
The Caps dropped the rematch two nights later 5-3 in a game that saw them blow a 3-0 lead. They would bounce back on March 3 beating the Bruins 2-1 in the shootout. Lars Eller scored for the Caps in regulation while Jakub Vrana was successful in the shootout.
Two nights later the Caps would lose 5-1 and then on April 8th lost 4-2 on home ice. With the Bruins banged up on April 11, the Caps got an impressive 8-1 win. Oshie (twice), Eller (twice), Sheary (twice), and Dowd all scored for the Caps.
Unfortunately, it was a much different and fully healthy Bruins team when they met again in Boston a week later. The Bruins got a 6-3 win in that game.
More. Penguins vs. Washington Capitals: Saturday night battle for first place. light
Those are the final six games of the Caps regular season. Which game are you looking forward to? Are you attending any of them? Let us know in the comments!