Here's everything to know before the Capitals take on the Rangers in their first game back from break.
The Washington Capitals are back from a three-day holiday break, and they'll look to start things back up on the right foot against the New York Rangers.
Here's everything to know before the Metropolitan Division showdown at Madison Square Garden. Puck drop is at 7 p.m. ET.
Washington Capitals Lines
The Capitals aren't making any lineup changes, as the combinations will remain the same as they were for Saturday's 2-1 shootout loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Ivan Miroshnichenko and Hendrix Lapierre, who were sent down before the Christmas break as part of a cap-saving paper transaction, were recalled again for Wednesday with Sonny Milano and T.J. Oshie still ailing.
Washington's only change is in goal, as Darcy Kuemper will get the start.
Here are the lines:
Alex Ovechkin-Dylan Strome-Tom Wilson
Aliaksei Protas-Connor McMichael-Anthony Mantha
Hendrix Lapierre-Evgeny Kuznetsov-Ivan Miroshnichenko
Beck Malenstyn-Nic Dowd-Nicolas Aube-Kubel
Martin Fehervary-John Carlson
Rasmus Sandin-Trevor van Riemsdyk
Joel Edmundson-Nick Jensen
Darcy Kuemper
Charlie Lindgren
Washington Capitals Injury Report
- Sonny Milano (upper-body) travelled with the team but did not skate in New York. He's a bit further in the distance when it comes to his timetable and remains on IR.
- T.J. Oshie (lower-body) skated on Wednesday and was in a regular jersey, and head coach Spencer Carbery said that he was full contact. He remains on IR, though it is a positive sign.
- Max Pacioretty (Achilles) will not play but skated again and was a full-contact participant. He's expected back soon and could even play this weekend.
- Ethan Bear is set to sign his new deal within the next 48 hours and again took full part in the morning skate in a regular jersey. He is also expected to return soon. Here's an inside look at his new contract in D.C.
- Nicklas Backstrom (hip) remains away from the team after deciding to step away from the game earlier in the year with his hip not responding the way he'd hoped following resurfacing surgery. He is unlikely to play again this season but has made no decisions with regard to retirement.
Washington Capitals Storylines
- The last time the Capitals faced the Rangers, they won 4-0, with Charlie Lindgren backstopping his team to victory. New York still has a lot of firepower, so defense again will be crucial against this team.
- Washington's power play has also been figuring things out since that Dec. 9 showdown, with PPGs in four of the last six outings, so generating offense that way is important. The McProMo second line also remains dangerous, with Anthony Mantha racking up points in seven of his last nine and Aliaksei Protas riding a three-game point streak, so look for them to help spark 5-on-5 offense.
- Alex Ovechkin recently ended a 14-game goal drought, and he will look to build off of that on one of the world's biggest stages at MSG.
- Dylan Strome has points in six of the last seven games.