The Washington Capitals held their morning skate with line changes aimed at sparking wins as they host the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday night. Coming off a 2-1 victory over Los Angeles, the Caps seek consecutive wins for the first time since October. Injuries to key centers have forced adjustments amid a dip in offensive output.
The Washington Capitals are looking to build momentum against the Edmonton Oilers in their only regular-season meeting this year at Capital One Arena. This game marks the start of a back-to-back set, with the Caps traveling to Montreal for a Thursday matchup against the Canadiens.
Washington has struggled lately, posting a 3-6-2 record in their last 11 games after starting 6-2-0. They snapped a skid with a 2-1 win over the Kings on Monday, thanks to Charlie Lindgren's 30 saves. Coach Spencer Carbery has implemented line changes to address scoring woes, as the team averages 2.79 goals per game through 19 contests, ranking 24th in the NHL—down from 3.49 last season, when they finished second league-wide.
Injuries have played a role, with center P-L Dubois sidelined until February due to an upper-body injury and Dylan Strome missing two games earlier. "If you look at last year, it was pretty consistent – for the most part – with lines," Strome said. "In the last couple of games, I think we’ve found something where we’re controlling play a lot."
Nic Dowd echoed the need for experimentation: "Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result is not going to help in a long season." Carbery emphasized process: "That’s our job... to dissect what happened. What did we do well? What areas can we get better in?"
Against Edmonton, discipline is key given the Oilers' elite power play, converting at 30.8% this season (third in NHL). Leon Draisaitl leads the league with 167 power-play goals since 2015-16, ahead of Alex Ovechkin by 17. However, Edmonton's 5-on-5 play lags, with a minus-16 goal differential in 21 games.
Logan Thompson starts in net for Washington, leading the NHL with a 1.85 GAA and .925 save percentage in 13 games. Stuart Skinner goes for Edmonton, with a 2.86 GAA in 15 starts.
Projected Capitals lines include McMichael-Strome-Ovechkin up top, with Dubois out. Oilers feature McDavid and Draisaitl prominently, though they have multiple injuries including Nugent-Hopkins (undisclosed).