Atlanta (8-10-2) at Washington (11-7-3) 7:00 p.m. EST
WASHINGTON (Ticker) -- Limping back to Washington after a tough
road trip, the Capitals hope home ice will provide better
results.
Improved goaltending is a good place to start when they look to
avenge a season-opening loss to the Atlanta Thrashers on
Wednesday.
In its recent five-game road swing, Washington managed just
three points (1-3-1) while allowing 26 goals. After losing,
6-5, in a shootout to New Jersey and defeating Anaheim, 6-4, the
Capitals dropped three straight by a combined score of 16-7.
The skid, which follows a five-game winning streak, can be
placed mainly on the shoulders of goaltenders Jose Theodore and
Brent Johnson.
Theodore has allowed four goals or more in each of his last
three starts while Johnson allowed seven goals in a loss San
Jose.
Alex Ovechkin scored a goal in Monday's 4-3 loss to Minnesota to
extend his point-scoring streak to eight games while Alexander
Semin has been out of action with a back injury.
Atlanta halted its own three-game losing streak with a 6-3 win
over Toronto on Tuesday. Todd White scored a pair of goals and
Slava Kozlov took over the team-lead with 19 points thanks to a
pair of assists.
Bryan Little collected two goals and an assist in the Thrashers'
win 7-4 over the Capitals to open the campaign on October 10.