Oct. 24 vs. Toronto Maple Leafs at Capital One Arena
Time: 6:00 p.m.
TV: ESPN, ESPN+
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, Capitals Radio 24/7
Toronto Maple Leafs (3-2-0)
Washington Capitals (1-2-1)
The Caps conclude a run of four straight games against Canadian opponents on Tuesday night in D.C. when they host the Toronto Maple Leafs. For Washington, Tuesday’s contest is also the front end of its first set of back-to-back games this season. The Caps take to the road right after tangling with Toronto; they have a Wednesday night date with the Devils in New Jersey.
Washington comes into Tuesday’s tilt on the heels of a 3-2 overtime loss to the Canadiens in Montreal on Saturday night. Although the Caps yielded the game’s first two goals for the fourth time in as many games this season, they gamely battled back with a pair of goals in the back half of the third period to tie the game, escaping a tangle of adversity.
The Capitals were whistled for five minor penalties in a span of just over 10 minutes of playing time in the third period of Saturday’s game, a situation that resulted in a hefty stretch of 5-on-3 time for the Habs. Not only did they prevent Montreal from adding to what was a 2-0 lead at the time, the Caps also managed to sneak in a pair of Dylan Strome goals to get the game evened up, forcing overtime and picking up a point. Strome’s second goal came with exactly two minutes remaining in regulation, and it was scored with Washington netminder Darcy Kuemper on the bench for an extra attacker.
“I think that was our best game, the whole year,” says Caps’ captain Alex Ovechkin. “Obviously we lost, but we’ll take the chances we generated through all those three periods. It was a good sign.
“I think all four lines generated lots of chances and played solid. Sometimes we make mistakes, but it’s not the same situation we had a couple of years ago when we know the system and we know how we have to play. Right now, we’re still learning, and it’s a learning process.”
Saturday’s game was also a good response to the one that preceded it, a 6-1 setback at the hands of the Senators in Ottawa. In that contest, five of the Caps’ dozen forwards failed to record a shot on net, and three players – T.J. Oshie (six), and John Carlson and Connor McMichael (three each) – accounted for half of the team’s total of 24 shots on net.
In the game against the Canadiens, four Washington forwards – Ovechkin, Strome, Nicklas Backstrom and Anthony Mantha – recorded more shots on net than they had managed in the three previous games combined. The Caps have scored only six goals – all of them at even strength – in four games this season, but Saturday’s game featured more scoring chances and good looks from the team’s top six than any of the preceding contests. For the second time in four games, they were able to climb out of a two-goal hole to collect at least a point, and their gritty third-period effort is something they believe they can build upon with a tough set of back-to-backs looming.
“I think so; we’re going to have to,” says Strome. “I thought it was probably our best period of the season, just making big penalty kills and [goaltender] Darcy [Kuemper] is making big saves. We had some more chances to score, too, and obviously we found a way to tie it. We’ve probably got to play like that every period here for a little while now, until we get some wins in the column and we start finding a way to score some goals.”
With an anemic average of 1.25 goals per game to date, the Caps rank last in the League. They’re the only club in the NHL that has yet to play with a lead thus far this season, and they are – along with St. Louis – one of only two clubs that hasn’t notched a power-play goal. The Caps’ average of 24.8 shots on net per game ranks 30th in the League, but their total of 33 on Saturday night represents a single-game high for the young season.
More players in Washington’s top six forward group were noticeable in a good way than in previous games in 2023-24, and the members of that group were around the net more and were successful at creating more chances. While that’s all good and necessary, the Caps now must start finishing those opportunities.
“On the one hand, it’s good,” says Caps’ coach Spencer Carbery, “because as coaches and as [players], if they weren’t getting in those spots, then it becomes even more concerning, because they’re not able to generate anything. So that, on the one hand, is positive.
“On the other hand, is it starts to get frustrating. And as that builds and they don’t go in for you as a line or individually, and that’s my job as head coach, to make sure that guys are focused on their process. Focus on your process and getting those opportunities, and eventually those will go in the back of the net for you.”
After going 2-1-0 on a season-opening three-game homestand, the Leafs are in town for the middle match of a five-game road trip. Toronto split a pair of decisions in the state of Florida over the weekend, and it will move on to Dallas and Nashville, respectively, after Tuesday’s game with the Capitals.
The Leafs fell to the Panthers in Florida on Thursday, then rallied back from a 3-1 third-period deficit to take down the Lightning in Tampa Bay on Saturday night, coming away with a 4-3 overtime victory on a John Tavares goal in the final minute of the extra session. Ex-Caps goaltender Ilya Samsonov started that game against the Lightning, but he was pulled after yielding three goals against on just four shots in 13:29 of work.
Joseph Woll picked up the win in relief of Samsonov, and Woll will be the starter on Tuesday in Washington, a decision made prior to Saturday’s contest.
