Top 3 key Capitals to watch against Stars
The Washington Capitals take on the Dallas Stars tonight at 8:30 p.m. eastern. Click here to learn how to watch and bet on the game. Read on to learn who the key players are to watch tonight.
Before we break down the key players to watch in tonight’s game, here’s what the lines looked like for morning skate via Samantha Pell of The Washington Post:
Ovechkin-Strome-Sheary
Johansson-Kuznetsov-Oshie
Protas-Eller-Mantha
Malenstyn-Dowd-Hathaway
Orlov-Carlson
Fehervary-Jensen
Gustafsson-TvR
Darcy Kuemper was the first goalie off the ice and is the expected starter in tonight’s game after he got the night off on Monday night against the New Jersey Devils.
#3 Darcy Kuemper
Darcy Kuemper looks to have a quality start tonight after his backup had a great start the other night in New Jersey. Kuemper’s 66 wins since 2019-20 are the most among goaltenders with 125 or fewer starts in that span. His career record is 146-97-36.
Among active goaltenders currently on an NHL roster with at least 300 games played, Kuemper ranks second in save percentage at .917 and goals against average at 2.49. Since 2017-18, Kuemper ranks first in save percentage (.921) and second in goals against average (2.45) in a minimum of 150 games played.
Currently Kuemper has a record of 3-2-0 with a 3.04 goals against average and a .899 save percentage. He made 23 saves in a win Saturday night against the Los Angeles Kings.
#2 John Carlson
John Carlson recorded a primary assist on Alex Ovechkin’s eventual game winning goal on Monday night at the New Jersey Devils. It was the 599th point of his career and he could go for 600 career points tonight.
Carlson is now one point shy of passing Michal Pivonka for the fifth most points in Capitals franchise history and would become the first defenseman in franchise history to reach the 600 point mark.
Carlson is also six games shy of 900 career games. He would become the sixth player to play in 900 or more games with the Capitals and win current teammates Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom and alumni Calle Johansson, Kelly Miller, and Peter Bondra.
Carlson leads the Capitals in time on ice per game, averaging 24:15 minutes of ice time a night. He also leads the Caps in blocked shots with 18 through their first seven games of the season.
Carlson has been heating up as he’s recorded points in four straight games. In fact he’s got a total of six points in those last four games with two goals and four assists.
Last season Carlson had a career high 17 goals. As long as he keeps his offense going and limits his turnovers, I could see him getting a well deserved Norris Trophy.
#1 Alex Ovechkin
Alex Ovechkin scored his third goal of the season on Monday night against the New Jersey Devils. The goal stood as the eventual game winning goal which marked Ovechkin’s 122nd career game winning goal.
He’s currently chasing Gordie Howe for second place on the all time goals list but his game winner passed Howe for the second most game winning goals in NHL history. Ovechkin only trails Jaromir Jagr (who had 135) for the most game winning goals in league history.
Ovechkin sits 19 goals shy of passing Howe (801) for second place on the NHL’s all time goals list. He’s also four goals shy of passing Howe’s mark for the most goals scored by a player with a single franchise. Howe had 786 goals with the Detroit Red Wings.
Ovechkin has recorded six points in seven games this season with three goals and three assists each. He’s five points shy of passing Adam Oates (1,420) for the 19th most points in NHL history.
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Ovechkin has 11 goals in his career against the Dallas Stars. That’s not a lot but keep in mind the Caps only play the Stars twice a year and have more games played against Eastern Conference and Metropolitan Division foes.