It’s time for another Washington Capitals Weekly Update. The Capitals briefly held a playoff position this week, for the first time since January 2nd. Following their win in Calgary Monday night, they edged ahead of the Detroit Red Wings for the second Eastern Conference Wild Card spot. However, the Red Wings overtook them the next day and a Wednesday loss kept the Capitals from gaining ground back. As of Saturday night, Washington sits one point behind Detroit once again. The New York Islanders are two points behind Washington. As of Sunday, the Capitals have 13 games left. Eight of those games are against teams which hold a playoff spot on Saturday night. Tom Wilson was suspended for six games this week and has five games remaining in his sentence. Here is the Washington Capitals weekly update for March 17th to 23rd.
Washington Capitals Weekly Update: March 17-23
On-Ice Results
The Capitals finished their Western road trip with a visit to the Calgary Flames. Dylan Strome gave Washington the lead in the first period to tie his single-season goal total from last year. Alex Ovechkin scored two power-play goals in the second period to extend the lead to 3-0. His first goal of the game was his 20th of the season. By reaching that milestone, he became the sixth-ever NHL player to record at least 19 20-goal seasons. Hendrix Lapierre and Tom Wilson added goals for Washington’s third consecutive win. Despite being outscored 14-11 on the road trip, the Capitals earned six of a possible ten points.
Washington’s next game was Wednesday against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Auston Matthews scored in the first minute of play, and William Nylander did the same to start the second period. The Capitals tried to come back, but couldn’t keep up with the Maple Leafs offence. Although Washington brought the score within one three times, they never tied it. Toronto led 4-2 after 40 minutes and added three goals in the third period. For the second time in seven days, Washington allowed seven goals in a game. Wilson took a double-minor for high-sticking on Noah Gregor with less than 10 minutes to play. He had a digital hearing via Zoom on Friday. The Department of Player Safety assessed a six-game suspension.
Also on Friday, the Capitals faced the Carolina Hurricanes. Carolina scored first, but power-play goals from Sonny Milano and Ovechkin tied the score at 2 about halfway through the game. Washington took its first lead since Monday when Milano juggled an airborne puck over Pyotr Kochetkov‘s shoulder. The Hurricanes reclaimed the lead before the second intermission. Darcy Kuemper, who had last played in the 7-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers, started the game. However, Charlie Lindgren finished the matchup. Washington retook the lead twice in the final period but couldn’t extend it beyond a single goal. The game went to overtime tied at 6. Neither team scored in overtime, and it took until the fifth round of the shootout to decide a winner. Strome was the only scorer in the shootout.
Injury Updates
This week’s injury update is the shortest the Capitals have had in a while. Two of the injured players from the last update missed games again. Both T.J. Oshie and Aliaksei Protas played in Calgary, but missed the games against Toronto and Carolina. Both are day-to-day. Oshie’s injury is to his upper body; Protas’ ailment is lower-body. They both participated in Saturday’s optional practice.
Washington has a showdown with Detroit coming up on Tuesday, which could tell the tale for the season. It’s an important game for both teams fighting for that playoff spot.
Main photo by: Geoff Burke – USA TODAY Sports
