It’s time for another Washington Capitals weekly updates. The best Capitals (24-21-8, 56PTS) are “tired of losing hockey games,” as goalkeeper Charlie Lindgren said this week. The best Washington can realistically hope for this season is to make the playoffs as a wild card. The team has lost eight of its last 10 games and is six points behind the second wild card spot. The players spoke a lot during the week about having played better in the past week than they had most of the season. While there’s a less than 10-percent chance for the Capitals to make the playoffs, the organization appears committed to chasing that possibility.
The Capitals have only eight games before the trade deadline, and 30 left in the season. General Manager Brian MacLellan indicated last week that the outcomes of this week’s games would significantly influence his approach to trades before the deadline on March 8. Here is the Washington Capitals weekly update for February 11th to 17th.
Washington Capitals Weekly Updates: February 11-17
On-Ice Results
The Capitals started the week with the second game of a back-to-back. They faced the Vancouver Canucks less than 24 hours after they shut out the Bruins last Saturday. The Canucks were the Western Conference leader at the time. Washington scored the game’s first goal, which they have struggled to do all season. Nic Dowd tallied his 8th goal of the season just over a minute into the game. The Capitals had a lead twice but lost 3-2 due to a turnover by Connor McMichael in the final 10 seconds of overtime.
Washington then hosted the Colorado Avalanche, a team they had lost badly to only 20 days beforehand. The Capitals allowed two goals in the first five minutes but tied the score 2-2 before the first intermission. Colorado scored twice more in the second period, but a power play goal by Alex Ovechkin in the third period brought the score to 4-3. Washington pulled Charlie Lindgren with 2:20 left to play, trying to tie the game and go to overtime for the second game in a row. Instead, the Avalanche scored twice into the empty net for a 6-3 Capitals loss.
Washington had three days of rest before they faced Montreal on Saturday night. Sonny Milano, who had missed 28 games due to an upper-body injury sustained in December, returned to the lineup. He played alongside Max Pacioretty and Michael Sgarbossa and scored Washington’s 3rd goal of the game. Anthony Mantha started the scoring early in the first period and T.J. Oshie added a power play goal to give Washington a 2-1 lead after the first period. Aliaksei Protas, who had assisted Mantha’s goal, put the Capitals up 4-3. Montreal opted to use an extra skater in the final two and a half minutes of the game and drew a penalty, but couldn’t get past Washington’s defence. Though Washington won the game, it lost defender Martin Fehervary early in the game to a lower-body injury.
Washington Capitals Weekly: Injury Updates
Prior to Saturday night, the Washington Capitals had the healthiest roster of the entire season. Trevor van Riemsdyk played against Montreal after missing four games. His and Milano’s returns meant that aside from Nicklas Backstrom‘s indefinite leave from the team and Evgeny Kuznetsov being in the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program, none of the Capitals were injured or ill. Two players–Pacioretty and defender Joel Edmundson–had started the season on injured reserve. “We need to be as healthy as possible to give ourselves the best chance to win hockey games,” head coach Spencer Carbery said in his media availability on Friday.
That healthy roster lasted less than one period into Saturday night’s game. Martin Fehervary fell behind the Washington net early in the first period and left the game after only two shifts. Capitals PR announced during the first intermission that Fehervary had a lower-body injury and would not return to the game. He left the Bell Centre on crutches according to Bailey Johnson of the Washington Post. The Capitals have an off day on Sunday, so the earliest update about his status will not be until Monday.
Odds & Ends
With Milano returning from his injury, the Capitals had to make space at the wing. On Thursday, Brian MacLellan opted to waive Matthew Philips, who had played in only three games since the start of 2024. Washington’s Metropolitan Division rival Pittsburgh Penguins, who are only one point behind the Capitals, claimed him on Friday. Phillips had five points for the Capitals in 27 games after signing with the team in the summer.
Two of the Capitals achieved milestones during the week. T.J. Oshie scored his 300th career goal on Saturday. He has 189 goals with the Capitals since joining the team via trade before the 2015-16 season. Alex Ovechkin has scored 17 points (8G + 9A) in his last 17 games. Five of those goals came this month in a six-game scoring streak that ended in Montreal. He recorded an assist on Oshie’s goal, giving him points in eight consecutive games.
With the trade deadline getting closer, several players have been mentioned as potential targets. Nic Dowd, Anthony Mantha, Joel Edmundson, and Charlie Lindgren have all had their names show up in trade speculation this month. However, no serious talks have been reported yet. Johnson noted on Tuesday that the Vegas Golden Knights had sent scouts to Washington’s last five consecutive games.
Main photo by: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports
