The Capitals host the New York Rangers today at 12 p.m. at Capital One Arena for the second of three games between the teams this season. On Oct. 29 in D.C., the Capitals outshot the Rangers 46-19 en route to a 5-3 win. Alex Ovechkin scored two first-period goals in the victory, while Aliaksei Protas recorded a career-high three points (1g, 2a). Washington will complete its season series with New York on March 5 at Madison Square Garden. The Capitals are 118-101-18-8 all-time versus New York and 7-3-0 in their last 10 games against the Rangers at home.
Logan Thompson is expected to start for Washington. The 6’4”, 207-pound goaltender has allowed two or fewer goals against in 12 of his last 15 starts dating back to Nov. 2, posting an 11-2-2 record with a 2.06 goals-against average and .928 save percentage in that span. Thompson (15 wins in 19 GP) ranks tied for eighth in the NHL in wins this season. Every goaltender ranked ahead of Thompson in wins has played at least 24 games. Among goaltenders with at least 15 games played this season, Thompson ranks fourth in save percentage (.918) and sixth in goals-against average (2.30).
2025 WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP UPDATE
Ryan Leonard (2023 Draft, 1st round, 8th overall), Cole Hutson (2024 Draft, 2nd round, 43rd overall) and Team USA face Petr Sikora (2024 Draft, 6th round, 178th overall) and Czechia tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET in the 2025 World Junior Championship semifinals. The winner will advance to the gold medal game on Sunday.
Leonard, Team USA’s captain, and the Americans are seeking back-to-back gold medals. Hutson, who is playing in his first U20 World Junior Championship, won gold with Team USA at the 2023 U18 World Championship. Hutson’s eight points (2g, 6a) through five games rank tied for first on Team USA and tied for third among all skaters. In addition, the 5’11”, 171-pound defenseman co-leads the tournament in assists and ranks tied for second in plus-minus rating (+8). Leonard scored two goals in Team USA’s 7-2 quarterfinal win over Switzerland on Thursday and ranks tied for first on the team in goals (4) and tied for second in plus-minus (+7). In 12 career U20 World Junior Championship games, Leonard has recorded 12 points (7g, 5a).
Sikora, the tournament leader in plus-minus (+9), has recorded seven points (4g, 3a) in five games in his first U20 World Junior Championship. On Thursday against Canada, Sikora scored the game-opening goal 43 seconds into the contest and tallied an assist on the game-winning goal with 39.4 seconds remaining in regulation to help Czechia advance to its fourth-straight semifinal. Sikora served as an alternate captain for Czechia at the 2024 U18 World Championship, where he registered two points (1g, 1a) in five games and was named a top-three player on his team.
Saturday, Jan. 4
Semifinal 1: Sweden vs. Finland (3:30 p.m. ET; NHLN)
Semifinal 2: United States vs. Czechia (7:30 p.m. ET; NHLN)
Sunday, Jan. 5
Third-place game (3:30 p.m. ET; NHLN)
Championship game (7:30 p.m. ET; NHLN)
