On Tuesday night at Capital One Arena, the Caps and Canes will clash in the opener of a crucial home-and-home set for both teams. Washington leads the Metropolitan Division, but only by a single point over the Islanders and Penguins. Carolina is fourth in the densely packed division standings, where only five points separate the top four teams.
“It’s so tight,” says Caps defenseman John Carlson. “Everyone is so close that things mean a lot, and we’re fighting for our lives, we are fighting for our positions and seedings and all of that stuff. Like always, focus on ourselves first, but certainly when you’re playing good teams down the stretch it’s nice to get continuously tested.”
The Metropolitan Division has five teams with exactly 40 regulation/overtime wins. One of them, the Columbus Blue Jackets, is not even in a playoff position. No other division has more than three teams with 40 or more ROW, and the entire Western Conference has only four such teams.
“Nobody has clinched yet,” observes Caps defenseman Brooks Orpik. “It’s pretty amazing at this point of the season that nobody has clinched. And these guys [the Hurricanes] have the third best record since the New Year, so the two games against them will obviously be very competitive for where both of us are in the standings.”
Video: Caps Pregame Locker Room | March 26
Each of the league’s other three divisions has two teams that have already nailed down a playoff berth.
Washington’s closest geographic rivals are Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Both are less than 200 miles from the District and rancor has long existed between the Caps and the NHL teams from both cities. But Washington is only 234 miles from Raleigh, and the Caps and Canes have never been able to stoke much of an organic rivalry. Sure, there has always been plenty of vitriol to go around – and there was a time not too long ago when these two faced one another eight times a season – but the two cities’ geographic proximity never sparked much of a compelling rivalry.
That may be on the verge of changing. With half a dozen games remaining in the season (Carolina has seven), the Caps will pop open the six-pack with a pair of games against the resurgent Hurricanes, the first time the old Southeast Division denizens have battled since Dec. 27. This time, playoff position is at stake. The last time the Caps and Canes met late in the season with anything on the line for both teams was during the stretch run of the 2007-08 season when the Caps overtook the Canes with a strong late-season surge. Washington won seven straight to finish the season, and two of those wins came at Carolina’s expense.
“I think we’ve learned enough lessons over the years to never take anything for granted,” says Carlson. “I think our team right now is in a good mental space to make a push going down the stretch here.”
Even after this home-and-home set with the Hurricanes, the Caps have a daunting schedule the rest of the way. Their final road trip of the season begins on Thursday in Raleigh, and it continues on to Tampa on Saturday and Florida on Monday. The Caps finish the 2018-19 regular season with home games against Montreal and the Islanders, respectively, so five of their final six foes are teams they could encounter again once the playoffs get underway on April 10.
“There is a chance you play any one of these teams,” notes Orpik. “I think it’s important that we just start playing a little more consistent than we have the last few games, and try to get some momentum built up so we can carry it into the first round. Every year is a little bit different, but if we look at years past, those two years where we had things locked up pretty early, I think we lost a little bit of momentum down the stretch. And then last year when we had to kind of play right to the end, it definitely had a positive carryover for us.”
Video: Todd Reirden | March 26
That’s probably true. Although the Caps still hadn’t locked down a playoff berth with six games remaining last season, they had more margin of error. Washington had one more standings point at the same stage of last season, and it held a five-point cushion over its nearest pursuer.
Washington is able to secure a playoff berth tonight if it wins in any fashion, AND if Montreal and Columbus both lose in regulation. The Canadiens are hosting Florida and Columbus is entertaining the Islanders. Last season, the Caps clinched a playoff spot in between games 77 and 78, and they clinched the Metro Division title in game 79. They are playing their 77th game of this season tonight.
Burakovsky Blossoming – Caps winger Andre Burakovsky has had an up and down season, but he has played extremely well of late, flourishing on the team’s fourth line and helping the Caps to drive possession when he is on the ice. Since he was moved from the team’s third to its fourth line on March 3, Burakovsky’s total of four goals at five-on-five is tied with top-line winger Tom Wilson for second on the team over that span; only Brett Connolly (five) has more.
“I feel great,” says Burakosvky. “I think I’ve been really good at handling the puck and managing the puck, and just trying to do little things right all the time in practice and in games. Every day I’m trying little things to put as much success in my game as possible.”
Burakovsky has proven to be an effective player even in games when his name does not appear on the scoresheet. Sunday’s game against Philadelphia provided a great example.
While he was skating a shift with Evgeny Kuznetsov and T.J. Oshie in the first period, Burakovsky drew a tripping call to put Washington on the power play. In the second period, he started a forechecking shift that culminated in Travis Boyd‘s goal, a marker that proved to be the game-winner and which was crucial at that juncture of the contest. Philly dominated Washington in the middle period of that game, getting three power play chances and out-attempting the Caps by a wildly lopsided total of 37-9.
Merely getting the puck up ice and forcing the Flyers to spend a few seconds in their had had value in that situation, but even more so once the Caps scored and doubled their precarious one-goal lead to 2-0. Burakovsky made the play in the corner that forced a turnover, leading to Boyd’s goal.
Burakovsky came into the NHL as a teenager and scored his first NHL goal less than half a period into his first game. For a long time, he was hard on himself when his name didn’t appear on the scoresheet for scoring a goal or picking up an assist, which is not uncommon for highly touted skill players taken in the first round of the NHL draft.
“He is getting along in his career now, and I think he is definitely getting better with that,” says Caps coach Todd Reirden. “And I think that once that has kind of left his mind, his game has matured as well. That’s exactly what is happening, and in turn he has played better overall hockey.
“It is difficult for young players that have scored a lot in their life – especially in junior hockey and different times – to help them understand that there are only a few guys in the league who can score every game and they are amazing to be able to do that. But for him, it’s about being ready at all times and having an overall game that can help us win. The ability to move him up and down the lineup – as we saw [Sunday] in the game – pays big dividends and it makes it very difficult to match up against.
“That’s not an easy thing for young players to understand, that they’ve always been known as scorers, and this is what they’re going to do. For him to understand that it is his overall game that is how he is being evaluated gives him a clear understanding that he is not letting down his coaches by not scoring. He is doing a great job with the other things that he is adding.”
Burakovsky has been on the ice for five goals for and only one against at five-on-five since he was placed on the fourth line.
“When I do those little things,” says Burakovsky, “maybe people in the stands don’t see it too much and see those little plays. But in yourself, you know that’s a great play and you know that’s the way to handle that. I think that is something that is creating momentum for me, and confidence for myself.”
Burakovsky is still finding the back of the net, too. He has a dozen goals on the season, matching his total from each of the last two campaigns despite diminished ice time per game this season. He scored a career-high 17 goals in 2015-16.
Video: Two-Man Advantage | March 26
In The Nets – Braden Holtby gets the net for the Caps on Tuesday against the Canes. Holtby was superb in his most recent start on Sunday against Philadelphia, making 35 saves to earn his 28th victory of the season in a 3-1 Washington win.
Lifetime against the Hurricanes, Holtby is 14-6-0 with two shutouts, a 2.03 GAA and a .936 save pct.
Petr Mrazek gets the net for the Hurricanes, and Mrazek’s play this season has been a significant factor in Carolina’s resurgence as a team. He has reached the 20-win plateau for the second time in his NHL career, and has been nothing short of brilliant as of late. In his last nine games, Mrazek is 8-1-0 with two shutouts, a 1.65 GAA and a .945 save pct.
Lifetime against Washington, Mrazek is 3-4-2 with a shutout, a 2.46 GAA and a .920 save pct.
All Lined Up – Here’s how we expect the Caps and the Hurricanes to look when they meet on Tuesday night for the front end of a home-and-home set of contests:
WASHINGTON
Forwards
8-Ovechkin, 19-Backstrom, 43-Wilson
62-Hagelin 92-Kuznetsov, 77-Oshie
13-Vrana, 20-Eller, 10-Connolly
65-Burakovsky, 26-Dowd, 72-Boyd
Defensemen
29-Djoos, 74-Carlson
9-Orlov, 2-Niskanen
44-Orpik, 3-Jensen
Goaltenders
70-Holtby
1-Copley
Injuries
6-Kempny (lower body)
Scratches
18-Stephenson
23-Jaskin
34-Siegenthaler
CAROLINA
Forwards
21-Niederreiter, 20-Aho, 14-Williams
37-Svechnikov, 11-Staal, 86-Teravainen
79-Ferland, 71-Wallmark, 48-Martinook
23-McCann, 42-McKegg, 8-Maenalanen
Defensemen
74-Slavin, 19-Hamilton
22-Pesce, 27-Faulk
44-de Haan, 57-van Riemsdyk
Goaltenders
34-Mrazek
35-McElhinney
Injuries
None
Scratches
13-Foegele
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