Caps Finish 2018 with Monday Matinee vs. Preds

Dec. 31 vs. Nashville Predators at Capital One Arena
Time: 12:30 p.m.
TV: NBCSW
Radio:Capitals Radio 24/7, FAN 106.7
Nashville Predators 22-15-2
Washington Capitals 24-10-3

The Caps put a wrap on calendar 2018 on Monday afternoon when they host a relatively rare New Year's Eve contest against the Nashville Predators at Capital One Arena. Washington will be seeking its fifth straight win.
Monday marks Washington's 80th regular season game of 2018, and the Caps will be aiming for their 50th victory; they come in with a 49-23-7 mark over the last 12 months, not including their 16-8 playoff run that culminated in the franchise's first Stanley Cup title last spring.
Washington finished up the road portion of calendar 2018 on Saturday night in Ottawa, earning a 3-2 victory over the Sens despite playing without half of the regular blueline corps that helped the Caps to their first Stanley Cup championship in June. Three Caps-drafted defensemen who did not see action during the playoffs last spring stepped up and had a positive impact on Saturday's game.
Playing in just his second NHL game, Tyler Lewington became the first Caps defenseman to record a Gordie Howe hat trick (goal, assist and fight in same game) since Kevin Hatcher on Feb. 10, 1991. The goal, the assist and the fight were all Lewington's first in the NHL.

Filling in for Niskanen on the right side of Washington's second defensive pairing, Madison Bowey scored his first NHL goal as well, marking the first time in Caps franchise history - and just the 19th time in NHL history - that two defensemen scored their first NHL goals in the same game. Bowey also skated a single-game career high of 18:16 on the night, rather remarkable considering he also spent nine minutes of the game in the penalty box.
Lewington and Bowey both victimized Ottawa's Marcus Hogberg for their first NHL goals, doing so in Hogberg's NHL debut. Saturday's game marked the first time in more than 51 years - since Oct. 14, 1967 - that two teammates scored their first NHL goals in the same game against a netminder who was making his league debut in that contest.
Playing in his 12th NHL game, Jonas Siegenthaler assisted on Lewington's goal while skating 15:21 on the night. One of the three young defensemen was involved in each of Washington's three goals, and Bowey's turned out to be the game-winner. The defensemen's offensive output was just enough to make a winner of their former AHL Hershey teammate Pheonix Copley, who set aside 31 of 33 shots to win his sixth straight decision and his ninth victory of the season.
"We've been very fortunate the last couple of years when guys step in," says Caps winger Tom Wilson, who had a goal and an assist in Saturday's win over the Sens. "They do a great job, and that's the identity and the mentality of this group: whatever team gets put on the ice goes out and gets the job done, and we've been doing it a number of different ways.
"[Saturday] night's win comes from the depth. Our superstars are the guys that carry the load every single night, and it's a long season. So when there is a night where the depth guys can chip in and help out, that's huge and that's what it takes to win some games."

In addition to winning four straight games, the Caps have won 16 of their last 19 games. Saturday night's win was a masterpiece by no means, but there was a warm afterglow in the Washington locker room after Sunday morning's practice, mostly because the players were extremely happy for Copley and the trio of young defenders, and Bowey in particular. But they also realize they'll need to play better against Nashville.
"I think we've got to play better," says Wilson. "As a group, we're aware that [Monday] is going to be a different monster, but we'll be ready and it's going to be fun to play a good hockey team."
Monday's game is the first of two between the Capitals and Predators this season, and the first of two between the two clubs in a span of 16 days. Washington travels to Music City to face the Preds on Jan. 15 in the season finale between the two teams.
The Preds were missing a quartet of key players at this time last week, but they got defenseman P.K. Subban and forward Viktor Arvidsson back in their lineup just after the holiday break. Subban missed 19 games while Arvidsson was sidelined for 24 of Nashville's first 38 games this season.
After authoring an eight-game road winning streak to start the season, the Preds are winless outside of the state of Tennessee since. When Mattias Ekholm scored in overtime to give the Predators a 5-4 win over the Stars in Dallas on Nov. 10, it gave Nashville a perfect 8-0-0 road record and a 13-3-0 mark overall. But as they come to the District on the last day of 2018, the Preds are looking for their first road victory in 51 days.
Nashville is now 0-8-2 in its last 10 road games, and it is a rather mediocre 9-12-2 overall since that victory in Dallas early last month. Six of those 10 straight road setbacks have been by the margin of a single goal, and the Preds were able to wring a point out of two of them.
Most recently, the Preds dropped a Saturday night contest to the Rangers on home ice, falling 4-3 in a game in which they led 3-2 after 40 minutes of play. Nashville carries a six-game losing streak (0-5-1) into Monday's game, but the Preds have won four straight over the Caps. Washington's last win over Nashville was a 4-1 triumph here in D.C. on March 18, 2016.