The Washington Capitals are back in action tonight on the road as they take on the Boston Bruins. They’ll be looking to avenge a home loss 7-3 on Jan. 10 as well as last season’s first round defeat in five games after winning the first game. The Caps finished 4-4-0 last season against the Bruins with Nicklas Backstrom leading the Caps with nine points in eight games with a goal and eight assists.
The Capitals held a morning skate today at TD Garden and there was several roster moves that were made. Axel Jonsson-Fjallby was in while Daniel Sprong was the odd man out. AJF skated on a line with Lars Eller and Connor McMichael. Sprong will be a healthy scratch tonight while the Caps will be without T.J. Oshie (IR with an upper body injury, can be activated next Monday vs. Vegas Golden Knights), Dmitry Orlov (two game suspension), John Carlson and Conor Sheary (both in COVID protocol).
Here were how the lines looked via Samantha Pell of The Washington Post:
Ovechkin-Kuznetsov-Hathaway
Protas-Backstrom-Wilson
AJF-Eller-McMichael
Hagelin-Dowd-Leason
Fehervary-Jensen
Irwin-Schultz
Kempny-TvR
Here were the Capitals power play units:
First unit: Ovechkin, Schultz, Backstrom, Wilson, Kuznetsov
Second unit: Ovechkin, TvR, Eller, Protas, Hathaway
Vitek Vanecek will get the start in goal for the second straight game. Head Coach Peter Laviolette told the media that this is the time for Vanecek to seize the starting goaltender job and find some consistency in his game. He made 30 saves the other night against the Winnipeg Jets on 33 shots. While the Caps put Oshie on injured reserve, they did so to make room for recalling Michal Kempny and Mike Sgarbossa from the taxi squad.
The Bruins win over the Capitals last week was part of their five game winning streak. That streak came to an end with a 7-1 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes when the team retired Willie O’Ree’s number. Their record is 22-12-2 with 46 points, good for fourth in the Atlantic Division and the second wild card spot. The Caps win over the Jets on Tuesday catapulted them to third in the Metropolitan Division with a 22-9-9 record with 53 points.
Can the Caps build off their win over the Jets? Here’s how to find out:
Date: Jan. 20, 2022
Time: 7 p.m.
Where: TD Garden
What Channel Is The Capitals Game On: Hulu and ESPN plus
Radio: 106.7 The Fan and Caps Radio 24/7
Betting Odds: The Capitals vs. Bruins betting odds on WynnBET have the Capitals as +1.5 underdogs on the road. The moneyline is set with the Capitals at +155 and the Bruins at -175. The over/under for tonight’s game is 5.5.
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