ARLINGTON, V.A. — The Washington Capitals know what they're going to get from the Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday. After all, they were in the same spot just a year ago, a resilient Wild Card team that snuck into the playoffs and was going to give its best to the bitter end to try and save the season.
That's why coach Spencer Carbery and the Capitals avoided all the cliches after practice on Tuesday, because it's not just about getting the job done. It's being ready for the "best punch" yet from a Habs team that's shown it can bounce back time and time again.
"The easiest thing to point to is the Montreal Canadiens and what they've been through as a team," Carbery said, adding, "You know exactly what type of game the Montreal Canadiens are going to play tomorrow night."
Washington is up 3-1 in the series and back in the driver's seat after a convincing 5-2 victory in Game 4 at Bell Centre, where the team got back to its identity, kept emotions in check and dominated at 5-on-5.
"I don't think anybody's trying to do too much, or we're not getting shaky or nervous," Lars Eller said. "It's been the same now in the playoffs, we just stay the course and we find a way to win those games and get that goal... we don't change anything. We have a good mentality, and we're resilient."
Capitals Notebook: Protas Continues To Gear Up, Ovechkin Takes Maintenance Day Before Game 5
ARLINGTON, V.A. — After a day off following a strong Game 4 win over the Montreal Canadiens, the Washington Capitals got back to work with practice on Tuesday. Alex Ovechkin, however, wasn't on the ice.
The Capitals hope to replicate that showing in Game 5 at home as they sit one win away from doing what they haven't done since hoisting the Stanley Cup in 2018: advancing in the playoffs.
"We don't think about that stuff (in the past)," Tom Wilson said. "We're focused on one game. We've got a very narrow focus right now. We're not looking years back, last year's group, two years, five years, whatever. We want to keep this machine rolling in here. We want to keep these guys dialed in."
Still, it won't be easy, as Alex Ovechkin reminded his group after a rough showing in Game 3. Montreal made the playoffs for a reason, and Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield and Lane Hutson, among other young stars on the roster, will surely be doing everything they can to keep the Canadiens' season alive.
"You know that their season's on the line, and there's no quit from that team over there and we know they're going to come out hard with the guys in that room and with that coach," Logan Thompson said. "We know they're going to come out real hard and we know they're going to be playing for their lives, so we've got to match their energy."
For Wilson, the key will be playing well at even strength and keeping the same mindset despite the circumstances.
"It's always a chess match. You're going over video, looking at what they're doing, what they are changing. We're changing things and adjusting and all that. You get a good game plan from the coaches, then it's on the players to go out there and execute and stay really dialed in and get the job done," Wilson said. "It doesn't change for Game 1 or 2 or 3 or 5, it doesn't matter. You've got to be going in the playoffs. It's a big game."
That said, the "killer instinct" is alive and well in the Capitals room going into a game where D.C. holds all the cards. Now, it's just about playing them right.
"Tomorrow night on home ice, I'm not worried about our guys overlooking or feeling overconfident in the moment. That's just not who we are as a team. It never has been in the time that I've been here. But you do have to understand that it's going to take our best to win a game and eliminate the Montreal Canadiens," Carbery said, adding, "The killer instinct part of it is, for me, our team and our individual players understanding that we need one more level to get to as a team and and as an individual player.
"That's what it's going to require tomorrow night. I think that the killer instinct is going to come with understanding the level that we're going to have to play at tomorrow night to win a hockey game."