The Washington Capitals aim to snap a skid when they visit the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday night in Raleigh, N.C. Carolina enters on a four-game winning streak, while Washington has dropped six of its last seven. Both teams are dealing with key injuries ahead of the matchup.
The Carolina Hurricanes (11-4-0) host the Washington Capitals (7-7-1) on Nov. 11 at Lenovo Center, marking the second half of Washington's four-game road trip. The Hurricanes sit atop the Eastern Conference and Metropolitan Division despite missing three top-six defensemen. They recently swept a back-to-back set, beating Buffalo 6-3 at home on Saturday and rallying from a two-goal deficit for a 5-4 win over Toronto on Sunday. Forward Seth Jarvis scored his team-high 10th goal in the Toronto game, becoming the second-fastest Hurricane in 15 years to reach double digits. "We've done a great job of doing it by committee," Jarvis said. "All facets of our game are really going right now." Carolina also fired a franchise-record 22 third-period shots on the road in Toronto, the most in over two years.
The Capitals have struggled since center Pierre-Luc Dubois underwent surgery for abdominal and adductor injuries sustained Oct. 31 against the New York Islanders. He is expected to miss three to four months. Washington opened the season 6-2-0 but has gone 1-5-1 since, including losses to Pittsburgh and Tampa Bay to start the trip. They have entered the third period tied in each of their last four losses but scored no third-period goals in those games, with just 14 third-period tallies in 15 games overall, tied for 28th in the NHL. Coach Spencer Carbery noted the challenge of replacing Dubois. "We're just trying to find the combination of that middle six," he said, mentioning potential roles for Connor McMichael, Justin Sourdif and Hendrix Lapierre.
Defenseman John Carlson emphasized the need for results. "We've got to find ways to score goals and come out on top," he said. "It does us no good to feel like you're playing good if you don't win." Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour praised his team's resilience amid injuries, including rookie Charles Alexis Legault's cut hand that sent him to the hospital. "I've never seen anything like it in all my days," Brind'Amour said. Forward Taylor Hall added, "We're obviously going to play our game and let the chips fall where they may."
Last season, Dubois contributed significantly at 5-on-5, on ice for 73 goals for and 44 against, a plus-29 differential.