The Washington Capitals hit the road and take on the bunch of jerks, the Carolina Hurricanes in a Sunday afternoon game. The Caps are coming off two wins in a row including a win that featured an Alex Ovechkin hat trick to the delight of the home crowd.
Tonight marks the first time the Caps have taken on the Hurricanes since Jan. 13, 2020 which was a 2-0 Caps win at Capital One Arena. Today first place in the Metropolitan Division will be on the line for both teams. The Hurricanes sit at a 15-3-1 record while the Caps are 13-3-5 but if you do the math that means both teams have 31 points. Also the winner will catapult into first place in the NHL. Take that for what you will.
Ovechkin has earned 95 points in 81 career games against the Hurricanes with 43 goals and 52 assists, marking the most points he has earned against a single franchise. No active player has more goals, assists and points against the Hurricanes than Ovechkin and his 43 goals only trail Michel Goulet (62 goals) and Dave Andreychuk (52) for the most against the franchise in NHL history.
With Ovechkin’s hat trick he bypassed Guy Lafleur for 27th and Brendan Shanahan for 26th on the NHL’s all time points list. Two of Ovechkin’s three goals the other night came on even strength while one came on the power play. Next up on the Ovechkin milestone list: he is two game winning goals shy of passing Phil Esposito (118 goals) for the third most game winning goals in NHL history. He is also two power play goals shy of passing Dave Andreychuk (274) for the most power play goals in NHL history.
Yesterday the Caps held a practice at MedStar Capitals Iceplex before hitting the road. Lars Eller, who missed six games this season, skated before practice in a full contact, normal jersey. It was his first time back in D.C. since being on the COVID protocols list and having to quarantine in Anaheim. This news coming despite the team being fully vaccinated.
Conor Sheary (upper body) and Nicklas Backstrom (hip) were also on the ice in non contact jerseys. T.J. Oshie and Justin Schultz weren’t present. Here were the lines via Samantha Pell of The Washington Post:
Ovechkin-Kuznetsov-Protas
Sprong/McMichael*-Eller-Wilson
Hagelin-Dowd-Hathaway
Malenstyn-Sgarbossa-Leason
Fehervary-Carlson
Orlov-Jensen
Cholowski-TvR
*Sprong took the first rush on the second line, McMichael took the next
Caps head Coach Peter Laviolette said he’s hopeful Eller will play today in Carolina, those words coming after practice. Eller was a full participant.
Date: Nov. 28, 2021
Time: 1 p.m.
Where: Capital One Arena
What Channel Is The Capitals Game On: NBC Sports Washington
Radio: 106.7 The Fan and Caps Radio 24/7
Betting Odds: The betting odds on WynnBET have the Capitals as +1.5 underdogs on the road against the Hurricanes. The moneyline is set at -145 for the Hurricanes and +130 for the Capitals. The over/under for todays game is 5.5.
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