#washington-capitals

#washington-capitals

Despite having the better of the play from the opening faceoff, a couple of unforced mistakes had the Caps down by two after the first period and down 3-0 before the second was five minutes old. It seemed like this game was destined to be one of those "executed well but couldn't finish" losses that have plagued them from time to time.

Against one of the typically top five-on-five teams in the NHL, the Capitals put together what was one of their best games of the season. While that may be hard to believe considering they were down 3-0 at one point in the game, the Caps were never behind the eight ball analytically throughout regulation, finishing on top in shot attempts 64-48, shots on goal 33-20, scoring chances 33-18, high-danger chances 16-8, and expected goals 3.8-2.28.

After a pretty brutal road trip (that at least had a decent ending), the NHL schedulers didn't give the Caps any breaks, hitting them with a Saturday night bout against the Carolina Hurricanes as a "welcome home" present. That's a tough task on any night; on this night, the Caps went into it minus both their goalies, half of their top-four defensemen, and Connor McMichael.

📸: RMNB Forward Bogdan Trineyev and goaltender Garin Bjorklund have been called up from the Hershey Bears. The Washington Capitals announced the move less than 90 minutes before puck drop against the Carolina Hurricanes. Trineyev was held out of Hershey's game against the Rochester Americans on Friday while Bjorklund backed up Mitch Gibson who was recalled from ECHL South Carolina. Trineyev, a first-line forward for the Bears who plays in all situations, will replace Connor McMichael on the roster.

Previews of the final game of the road trip from hell from Vogs and AP. Y'all...this trip is brutal. Leftovers from that loss in Seattle, if you can stomach 'em. [WaPo, RMNB] Need some good news? The Caps' Pride Night auction raised over $30K for the Wanda Alston Foundation, plus another $5K from Giant and over $10K from the evening's 50-50 raffle. [Caps]

Ovechkin's fourth Funko POP!, a Fanatics exclusive figurine, celebrates the Capitals legend becoming the NHL's all-time goals leader and features The Great 8's exclusive logo on the white, black, and gold box. The figure itself is aggressively grey-haired and grey-bearded. The details are nailed as the Figvechkin sports his trademark gap-toothed smile, wears his Capitals' 50th anniversary away jersey, and rocks his yellow laces on his skates.

"Yeah, I always was joking with him last year, 'Yeah, I'll get you on a mask, I'll get you on a mask,'" Thompson said. "And then I remember this year, one of my masks was done, and he made a comment on Instagram saying, 'Oh, I thought I was supposed to be on your next mask.'

Aliaksei Protas and Ilya Protas scored again on the same night - a feat we've nicknamed a Dueling Goaltas. The Pro Bros both lit the lamp on Friday, January 23, in their respective games for the Washington Capitals and Hershey Bears. The January 23 event marked the second time this season they've scored on the same day. It came eight days after Ilya, 19, was named an AHL All-Star and learned of the nod from his older brother, Aliaksei, six years his senior.

The Caps made some moves in the right direction in Edmonton, Thompson chats goalie masks and goalie fights and more in today's clips. A few leftovers from Saturday night's loss in Edmonton. [WaPo ($), RMNB] The Washington Capitals took a step in the right direction on Saturday, but they need to treat it as a true turning point on their road trip and the rest of the season. [THN]

Sandin was hurt with just 19 seconds remaining in the first frame, absorbing a hit from Oilers forward Curtis Lazar against the boards. After getting up slowly, Sandin got back into position and made a big shot block on defender Ty Emberson with the inside of his leg. The 25-year-old Swede needed assistance to get back to the team's bench once the horn sounded to end the period.