Here's everything to know as the Capitals take on the Jets to kick off the biggest road trip of the season.
The Washington Capitals face the biggest test of the season as they embark on a critical road trip that determines the team's playoff hopes, and it all starts on Monday with a showdown against the Winnipeg Jets.
Here's everything to know before puck drop at Canada Life Centre at 7:30 p.m. The Capitals are three points out of a Wild Card spot.
Washington Capitals Line Combinations
Tom Wilson is out due to an upper-body injury. In more positive news, T.J. Oshie appears set to make his return after coming off the injured reserve on Monday. Nic Dowd and Martin Fehervary remain on the IR, so it appears they will not return just yet.
Charlie Lindgren will start for the sixth straight game despite missing morning skate due to maintenance.
That said, here are the expected line combinations:
Alex Ovechkin-Hendrix Lapierre-Aliaksei Protas
Sonny Milano-Dylan Strome-Ivan Miroshnichenko
Max Pacioretty-Connor McMichael-T.J. Oshie
Beck Malenstyn-Mike Sgarbossa-Nicolas Aube-Kubel
Trevor van Riemsdyk-John Carlson
Rasmus Sandin-Nick Jensen
Alex Alexeyev-Ethan Bear
Washington Capitals Injury Report
- Tom Wilson is out due to an upper-body injury.
- Nic Dowd upgraded to contact at Saturday's morning skate but will not play and remains out as he recovers from an upper-body injury he suffered back on Feb. 20 against the New Jersey Devils. He will make the upcoming road trip, too.
- Martin Fehervary also upgraded to contact but is still out with a lower-body injury he suffered back on Feb. 17 against the Montreal Canadiens. Fehervary will also make the trip.
- Nicklas Backstrom remains on indefinite leave due to his hip not responding as he'd hoped following hip resurfacing surgery.
Washington Capitals Storylines
- Alex Ovechkin has points in five straight outings and 15 of the last 17 games overall, along with 10 goals in the last 16 games.
- Sonny Milano has goals in five straight outings and points in seven of the last eight games since returning from an upper-body injury that held him out for over two months.
- Dylan Strome has four assists in his last two games and has points in eight of the last nine games.
- Hendrix Lapierre has five goals and seven points in six games since his latest call-up and ranks second among all NHL rookies in scoring and first among all freshmen in points per game since Feb. 26.
- The Capitals have power-play goals in seven straight games and 10 of the last 11 and 10 PPGs in the last seven outings.
How To Watch Capitals vs. Jets
The game will be live on Monumental Sports Network.
Fans can also tune in on Caps Radio 24/7 and 106.7 FM The Fan.