Back To Back – The Caps and Rangers are set to tangle in a weekend set of back-to-back matinee meetings that will bring each club to the midpoint of its 2023-24 regular season schedule. Saturday’s game is at Capital One Arena, and the Sunday afternoon contest is at Madison Square Garden. The games conclude the season’s series between the two longtime rivals, who have split a pair of four-goal decisions to date.
Charlie Lindgren blanked the Rangers 4-0 on Dec. 9 in Washington, stopping 31 shots to notch his second shutout of the season. The Rangers returned the favor on Dec. 27 in Manhattan, scoring five unanswered goals – three of them from defensemen – en route to a 5-1 victory over the Caps in the first game after the NHL’s annual holiday break.
As the two Metro Division rivals prepare to clash twice this weekend, both are coming into the game on the heels of losses, and both have been scuffling as of late. The Caps fell 4-1 to Seattle here on Thursday and they haven’t authored consecutive victories since before Christmas. The Rangers are coming off a 5-2 defeat at the hands of the Blues in St. Louis on Thursday, and the Metro Division leaders have seen their lead over second-place Carolina shrink to three points, following a 2-4-1 stretch for the Blueshirts.
The Caps are also dealing with some lingering injury issues. Tom Wilson missed the Caps’ Thursday game against Seattle, and Alex Ovechkin has been a game-time decision for each of the team’s last couple of games on its current homestand.
“Both game time [decisions],” says Caps’ coach Spencer Carbery, a couple of hours ahead of Saturday afternoon’s puck drop. “As they prepare and get ready, we’ll know.”
Wilson suffered a broken nose early in the third period of the Caps’ 4-3 victory over Los Angeles this past Sunday. He went off for immediate repairs, but returned to take a couple of late shifts in that game. Thursday’s game against Seattle is the first he has missed this season, but he did report feeling well following a Friday practice session at MedStar Capitals Iceplex.
“Right now, I feel really good,” Wilson said, shortly after the completion of Friday’s practice session. “I’ve got to see. Obviously, [I’m feeling] the adrenaline of being out in practice and skating around, so we’ll see how I feel a little bit later today, but I feel pretty good. So hopefully, I'm ready to rock [Saturday].”
Happy Anniversary, Happy Anniversary – On this date in 1993, Caps’ defenseman Kevin Hatcher became the first Washington defenseman to record a hat trick when he dented the Rangers for three goals in a 5-4 Caps’ victory over the Blueshirts at Madison Square Garden. Hatcher scored twice in the first period – including once on the power play – and then netted the game-winner with 3:06 remaining in regulation, snapping a 4-4 tie. Hatcher also assisted on a Michal Pivonka power-play goal in the second period, for a four-point night.
Hatcher netted 34 goals during that 1992-93 season, still the single-season standard for a Washington defenseman. Along with Al Iafrate (25) and Sylvain Cote (21), Hatcher was one of three Caps’ defensemen with 20 or more goals that season, a feat no NHL club has achieved before or since.
Today is also the anniversary of Ovechkin’s first career hat trick. On this date in 2006, Ovechkin scored all three Washington goals – including the game-winner in overtime – in a Friday the 13th victory over the Ducks in Anaheim. Three days later in Glendale against the Coyotes, he scored “The Goal.”
In The Nets – Lindgren gets the net today for the Capitals, starting for the first time in calendar 2024. His most recent start was an abbreviated outing against the Islanders in New York on Dec. 29; Lindgren left that game with an upper body injury after stopping all three shots he faced in the game’s first 6:46.
Following a short stint on injured reserve, Lindgren is ready to man the crease for the Caps this afternoon. He has helped the Caps to points in 10 of his last 13 starting assignments (7-2-3 with a no decision) this season. Among all NHL netminders with 15 or more appearances this season, Lindgren’s .923 save pct ranks second, and his 2.27 GAA ranks fifth.
Lifetime against the Rangers, he is 1-0-0, with that 31-save shutout achieved here last month.
For New York, veteran Jonathan Quick gets the start. In his first season with the Rangers, Quick has outperformed No. 1 netminder Igor Shesterkin this season. Quick, who turns 37 next week, is 9-2-2 with a pair of shutouts, a 2.44 GAA and a .915 save pct. on the season. He will be seeking his 385th career NHL victory today, and if he gets it, he will pull even with Hockey Hall of Famer Mike Vernon (385) for 16th place on the NHL’s all-time wins ledger.
Lifetime against Washington, Quick is 9-7-0 with a 2.55 GAA and a .910 save pct. in 16 appearances (all starts).
All Lined Up – Neither team conducted a morning skate today, nor will they do so ahead of Sunday’s rematch in Manhattan. That said, here is how we believe the Capitals and Rangers “might” look when they take the ice on Saturday afternoon at Capital One Arena:
WASHINGTON
Forwards
8-Ovechkin, 17-Strome, 43-Wilson
67-Pacioretty, 92-Kuznetsov, 77-Oshie
21-Protas, 24-McMichael, 39-Mantha
47-Malenstyn, 26-Dowd, 96-Aube-Kubel
Defensemen
42-Fehervary, 74-Carlson
57-van Riemsdyk, 25-Bear
6-Edmundson, 3-Jensen
Goaltenders
79-Lindgren
35-Kuemper
Injured
15-Milano (upper body)
19-Backstrom (lower body)
38-Sandin (upper body)
Scratches
27-Alexeyev
29-Lapierre
45-Phillips
NEW YORK
Forwards
20-Kreider, 93-Zibanejad, 50-Cuylle
10-Panarin, 16-Trocheck, 13-Lafreniere
15-Leschyshyn, 12-Bonino, 22-Brodzinski
26-Vesey, 21-Goodrow, 17-Wheeler
Defensemen
55-Lindgren, 23-Fox
79-Miller, 8-Trouba
56-Gustafsson, 4-Schneider
Goaltenders
32-Quick
31-Shesterkin
Injured
24-Kakko (lower body)
71-Pitlick (lower body)
72-Chytil (upper body)
Scratches
6-Jones
25-Blidh
