Things weren’t looking great for the Caps pre-game. Alexander Ovechkin was announced to be out before puck drop, joining Rasmus Sandin and Sonny Milano on the injured list. For a team that has a hard time scoring, losing your top scorer just before a game against one of the better teams in the league is bad news bears. So for the Caps to claw out a win was super impressive.
It wasn’t a perfect game, but at five on five, the Caps were the better team – and it’s worth wondering how much of that had to do with the move of Evgeny Kuznetsov to the wing.
Three Takeaways:
- The only two goals the Caps allowed were from defensemen Adam Fox. Seems like the Caps let a lot of defensemen score, which is frustrating. Hard to figure if it’s because teams are just getting lucky with seeing eye shots or what, but Caps need to do a better job of blocking shots or getting out of the way so they don’t screen their own goalie.
- Oshie was maybe the most noticeable player in the game. He forced multiple turnovers and created a lot of chance. For him to be rewarded with a goal was awesome to see, especially because he can’t seem to buy a goal this season. There’s a possibility this could be Oshie’s last season so we need to enjoy him while we can.
- It can’t be stressed enough how much better Kuznetsov looks on the wing than at center. This was his second game playing on the wing (first was against Nashville) and the team just looks better when he’s there. It will be interesting to see if Carbery will keep him there going forward.
They Said It: