Washington Capitals (7-4-3 17pts) v. Columbus Blue Jackets (8-6-1 17pts)
Time: 7p EST
Station: NBC Sports Washington
Preview:
In the first match-up between the two clubs this season, Washington looks to have their first three game win streak of the season. In the last nine games for Columbus, the Blue Jackets are 4-4-1.
Washington will be without the services of John Carlson tonight and in his place is Jonas Siegenthaler, who was recalled from the Hershey Bears earlier today.
Columbus’ Cam Atkinson looks to get back on the scoring sheet with no points in the last five contests.
Washington Capitals:
Projected Lineup:
Alex Ovechkin — Evgeny Kuznetsov — Dmitrij Jaskin
Chandler Stephenson — Nicklas Backstrom — T.J. Oshie
Jakub Vrana — Lars Eller — Brett Connolly
Andre Burakovsky — Travis Boyd — DeVante Smith-Pelly
Michal Kempny — Matt Niskanen
Dmitry Orlov — Christian Djoos
Jonas Siegenthaler — Madison Bowey
Braden Holtby
Pheonix Copley
Scratched: Nic Dowd, Aaron Ness
Injured: John Carlson (day-to-day), Brooks Orpik (LTIR)
Keys to the Game:
1. Be consistent in the faceoff circle
2. Keep your feet moving
Columbus Blue Jackets:
Projected Lineup:
Artemi Panarin — Pierre-Luc DuBois — Cam Atkinson
Nick Foligno — Boone Jenner — Josh Anderson
Lukas Sedlak — Alexander Wennberg — Anthony Duclair
Markus Hannikainen — Brandon Dubinsky — Riley Nash
Ryan Murray — Seth Jones
Markus Nutivaara — David Savard
Zach Werenski — Scott Harrington
Sergei Bobrovsky
Joonas Korpisalo
Scratched: Adam Clendening, Cam Atkinson, Dean Kukan
Injured: None
Keys to the Game:
1. Get a good start
First Period:
Columbus Penalty — Josh Anderson for Cross-checking — 2 min minor — 4:46
Washington Penalty — Evgeny Kuznetsov for Interference — 2 min minor — 15:28
Columbus PPG — Oliver Bjorkstrand (2) from Nick Foligno (5) and Alexander Wennberg (8)
End of 1st – WAS – 0 CLB – 1
Shots 15 09
Faceoffs 12 13
Hits 03 12
PP 0/1 1/1
Analysis: The Washington Capitals came out shooting pretty well but started to fall midway through the first period. Faceoffs throughout the contest have been virtually even and the Capitals need to continue playing their game in shooting the puck.
Need to Do: Much like in the previous contest, the Capitals have to play more physically. The Blue Jackets are dominating the Capitals when it comes to the hits. In addition, the Capitals need to do a better job of hitting the net. There were several missed opportunities to get goals.
Second Period:
Columbus Penalty — Alexander Wennberg for Hooking — 2 min minor — 6:51
Washington PPG — Matt Niskanen (3) from Nicklas Backstrom (15) and Evgeny Kuznetsov (14) — 7:53
Columbus Penalty — David Savard for Holding — 2 min minor — 11:08
Washington Penalty — Michal Kempny for Holding — 2 min minor — 18:13
End of 2nd – WAS – 1 CLB – 1
Shots 25 25
Faceoffs 25 21
Hits 10 20
PP 1/3 1/2* :13 left in current power play
Analysis: The Power-play units have been very effective. In the face-off circle, the Capitals were better and both teams continue to shoot the puck very well.
Need to Do: The Capitals must get better on the physicality. Columbus is all over the Capitals on this aspect. In the last 20 minutes, the Capitals need to attack the net to make Bobrovsky uncomfortable and take advantage of any open net chances that happen.
Third Period:
Washington Penalty — Dmitry Orlov for Roughing — 2 min minor — 4:04
Columbus PPG — Anthony DuClair (7) from Artemi Panarin (12) and Zach Werenski (8) — 5:09
Columbus Penalty — Pierre-Luc Dubois for Holding the Stick — 2 min minor — 13:00
Columbus Penalty — David Savard for Hooking — 2 min minor — 19:17
End of 3rd – WAS – 1 CLB – 2
Shots 34 36
Faceoffs 32 29
Hits 19 24
PP 1/5 2/3
Analysis: The Capitals fizzled out when it came to attacking the net until the last five minutes of the contest. The Capitals physicality did not come out until the third period but still was not enough.
The Capitals did not take enough shots on the power-play and must shoot the puck when it comes to the power-plays.
In the faceoff circle, both teams were fairly even throughout the contest. Both teams were also fairly even in shots on goal overall.
Washington will look to fix some of these issues when they take on the Arizona Coyotes Sunday at 5 p.m., ET.
Next Up:
Washington (7-5-3 17 pts) vs. Arizona (7-6-1 15 pts)
Columbus (9-6-1 19 pts) vs. New York Rangers (7-7-1 15 pts)
You can watch TXHT Live this Tuesday at 8p EST on both Twitch and Facebook Live.
