The Rangers are in Washington tonight to take on an “undefeated” Capitals team that sits atop the Metro Division. The Caps are doing what they did last year, scoring at a solid pace while depending on tremendous defense and goaltending. The Caps ran away with the President’s Trophy last season, and seem to be picking up right where they left off.
The Rangers are dealing with some injuries at the moment, but still have the forward depth to keep up with the Caps. This game will be won by the team that makes fewer mistakes in their own zone. The Rangers have been porous on defense and Henrik Lundqvist has been having his usual slow start. So this game could be high scoring.
Caps Systems
Under Barry Trotz the Caps run a 1-1-3 lock or a 1-2-2 forecheck, which they use aggressively or conservatively depending on the game situation (e.g., puck location, the score, etc.). In the defensive zone, Trotz runs your standard zone defense. On special teams, the Caps employ a 1-3-1 power play, and a diamond/box hybrid penalty kill depending on puck location and opposition setup.
For more on these systems, check out our Hockey Systems page.
Caps Lines
Alex Ovechkin-Evgeny Kuznetsov-T.J. Oshie
Marcus Johansson-Nicklas Backstrom-Andre Burakovsky
Zachary Sanford-Lars Eller-Justin Williams
Daniel Winnik-Jay Beagle-Tom Wilson
Karl Alzner-Matt Niskanen
Dmitry Orlov-John Carlson
Brooks Orpik-Nate Schmidt
PP1: Ovechkin-Backstrom-Oshie-Johanssen-Carlson
PP2: Kuznetsov-Winnik-Williams-Orlov-Niskanen
Braden Holtby gets the start.
Rangers Lines:
Jimmy Vesey–Derek Stepan–Rick Nash
Chris Kreider–Mika Zibanejad–Mats Zuccarello
J.T. Miller–Kevin Hayes–Michael Grabner
Brandon Pirri–Josh Jooris–Jesper Fast
Ryan McDonagh–Nick Holden
Marc Staal–Kevin Klein
Brady Skjei–Adam Clendening
PP1: DJ ZBad-Kreider-Pirri-Zucc-McDonagh
PP2: Nash-Stepan-Vesey-Hayes-Clendening
Henrik Lundqvist gets the start.
Injuries/Scratches: Oscar Lindberg (hip), Dan Girardi (hip), Pavel Buchnevich (back), Dylan McIlrath (healthy)
Crazy Prediction: A two point night for Clendening.
Game time is 7pm. No gifs tonight (sorry!). Also there won’t be a recap tonight. Saturday night games are rough.
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