Capitals open up home-and-home with Devils

Washington's brief two-game road trip ends with a stop in Newark Thursday, as the Capitals will play their first of back-to-back games with the Devils.

While the Capitals beat the Devils 4-2 back in Washington on October 17, New Jersey has made a significant change to its roster since that contest, acquiring goaltender Connor Hellebucyk from the Winnipeg Jets just 6 days later.

Hellebucyk has been excellent with New Jersey since coming over in a trade, with a 5-0-0 record and 1 shutout with the Devils, along with a .913 save percentage. Throughout his career, he has posted a .923 save percentage against the Caps, along with an 8-5-2 record and a pair of shutouts.

But this has been anything but a usual week in Northern New Jersey, with the controversy surrounding him backing up in the Devils' visit to Winnipeg and the resulting fallout in the Canadian media. Despite the strong fan reaction in Manitoba, he now has a chance to put it behind him and return his focus on home ice, and figures to play prominently in the next two contests against Washington.

For the Capitals, they are coming off a strange 3-2 win in Ottawa where they registered just 17 shots on net - only 6 after the first period - but scored on the last two to pull out an overtime win over the Senators in which their own goaltender, Logan Thompson, kept the team afloat through what coach Spencer Carbery said was their "worst period of the season” in the middle frame.

Cole Hutson was the hero for Washington in overtime, as the young defenseman who scored his first career goal on a netminder in Newaek 7 months ago, has been playing well since the acquisition of Jack St. Ivany from Winnipeg on waivers, and has 3 goals and 3 assists in his last 5 games.

Certainly, while Washington reeled off four straight goals in the win at Capital One Arena last month, goals figure to be more of a premium tonight, and the Capitals certainly will have to cut down on some of the defensive lapses that have led to scoring chances from their opponents against a dangerous Devils squad.

Jack Hughes leads the Devils in scoring through nearly a quarter of their season, posting 26 points in 19 games, including 9 goals. Against Washington, Hughes has 7 goals and 18 assists, with his 25 points being tied for second-most against any opponent he has faced.

Washington's last visit to Prudential Center also was not a game the Capitals want to remember, as the Caps' slim playoff hopes pretty much went up in smoke in an ugly 7-3 loss on April 2, a game in which Jesper Bratt and Hughes both posted 5 points each.

But, both teams have gone significant overhauls over the past six months, Washington bolstering its offense with newcomers such as Alex Tuch (11 goals), Jordan Kyrou (14 points) and Boone Jenner (6 goals), while New Jersey made the major move in net.

While it is still November, the Capitals and Devils figure to be the two teams chasing the Carolina Hurricanes in the Metropolitan Division standings, and while New Jersey sits in second place with a 13-6-0 mark, Washington is in fourth with 3 fewer wins but also the same games in hand with a 10-6-0 record, and 3-2 away from home.

Washington tends to have more trouble playing solid goaltending from behind, so it is likely important the Caps don't fall behind early. Capitals-Devils games in recent years have tended to be wide-open affairs, that could change somewhat with the change in New Jersey's net as the odds of another 10 goals combined like the last time the teams met in Newark seem slim.

The Capitals and Devils will head down the Turnpike Saturday to conclude the home-and-home, leaving just one game left in the season series between the two division rivals on January 24 in Newark, which will be Alex Ovechkin's final appearance - at least in the regular season - in New Jersey.