For the Washington Capitals, Week 16 is one with a heavy workload – four games with a decided Central Division bent to it, three opponents representing that division on the week’s schedule.
The Opponents
Nashville Predators (Tuesday/8:00). Another opponent that the Caps faced recently, another opponent to whom the Caps lost decisively in that meeting. Washington dropped a 6-3 decision to the Predators on New Year’s Eve, the last game that the Caps lost at Capital One Arena. The rematch will be played in Nashville, where the Caps have lost two in a row and are just 1-4-1 in their last six visits to Tennessee.
The Predators are in a groove at the moment with points in seven straight games (5-0-2), starting with that 6-3 win over the Caps on December 31st. They have been consistent in their goal scoring, posting three or more goals in all seven games. It is their defense that has been a bit uneven, allowing three or more goals in four of those seven games but getting two shutouts along the way as well.
Nashville has been a dominant team on home ice so far. After starting the year 3-3-0, the Predators are 12-4-0 in their last 16 games. The odd thing about the four losses is that two of them were shutout losses. It brought the total of shutouts suffered on home ice to three, tied for most in the league (Montreal, Philadelphia, Toronto).
New York Islanders (Friday/7:30). The Caps return to home ice and the Metropolitan Division for their opponent when they host the New York Islanders on Friday. This will be the second of four meetings between the clubs this season, Washington taking a 4-1 decision in Brooklyn on November 26th. This game will be the highlight matchup of the week, marking the first time that Barry Trotz will stand behind the bench at Capital One Arena since Game 4 of last spring’s Stanley Cup final. In that game, the Caps’ penultimate game of the season and Trotz’ as Capitals head coach, Washington dominated the Vegas Golden Knights in a 6-2 win.
Trotz and the Islanders have doggedly dragged themselves back into contention for a playoff spot. Since dropping consecutive decisions to the Pittsburgh Penguins (in a shootout) and Vegas Golden Knights in mid-December, the Islanders are 10-3-0 in their last 13 games going into the new week. It has enabled them to climb into the second wild-card spot in the standings, a tie-breaker (points percentage) ahead of the Buffalo Sabres. Consistent offense has been key. In those 13 games, New York scored three of more goals 11 times. Two of their three losses occurred when they failed to reach that three-goal threshold.
The Trotz effect has been precisely where Caps fans might have expected it. Last season, the Islanders finished the year allowing 3.57 goals per game, the worst scoring defense in the league. Going into Week 16, the Islanders are allowing only 2.63 goals per game, the fourth-best scoring defense in the league. They have been a lot stingier in allowing shots on goal, cutting their average from 35.6 per game last year to 30.9 per game going into the new week. Where they could stand to improve is in their shot attempts-for at 5-on-5 where this year’s performance to date (47.72 percent) is only marginally better than last year’s season mark (47.49 percent).
Chicago Blackhawks (Sunday/12:30). Washington closes the week with an afternoon meeting in Chicago on Sunday against the Blackhawks. This contest will complete the two-game season series between the teams, the Caps having taken a 4-2 decision in Washington on November 21st. Chicago has not been an especially hospitable place for the Caps. Only once in their last eight visits to Chicago have the Caps beaten the Blackhawks in regulation (3-2 in November 2014), and they are 3-5-0 in their last eight visits to the Windy City.
Perhaps the Blackhawks are paying a price for their own hard-earned success and a nod from the hockey gods earlier this decade, because they can’t seem to buy a break these days on the ice. Most notably, their fans get their money’s worth in terms of hockey, but usually leave with a bitter taste as a result. Of their 47 games played going into the new week, 14 of them went to extra time. Their first five games this season went to extra time, and they went 3-2-0 in those contests. But since then, the Blackhawks are 2-7 in extra time games. The odd part of the whole “extra time” issue is that only once this season did the Blackhawks take the game to a shootout, a 2-1 loss to the Los Angeles Kings on November 16th. In their 5-9 extra time record, six losses have come when the Blackhawks scored first. It is a team that has done a fine job of stealing defeat from the jaws of victory.
Hot Caps…
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Potential Milestones to Reach This Week…