The Capitals road ahead doesn't get any easier, starting with Saturday against the Devils.
After three days off for the holiday break, the Washington Capitals are back in action — and after that, it's nothing but work down the line.
The Capitals will play 22 games over the next 41 days — including a six-game long road trip — going into the Olympic Break.
Eleven of those 22 contests will be against opponents that sit in playoff position as of Dec. 27.
“The next portion of the season, January, is going to determine a lot of what we’re about and where this team goes. That’s just a fact. Because if you look at our schedule and what we’re about to embark on… it’s go time,” Carbery said on Tuesday.
Washington currently sits fourth in a tight Metropolitan Division and holds the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference following a rocky December. The Capitals have three more games this month, starting with the New Jersey Devils on Saturday in Newark.
With a lot of work ahead, Carbery extended his morning skate, which came after an early morning of day-of travel to New Jersey, just to get Washington back in the rhythm of puck touches. Now, it's about the team finding its identity and getting back to its winning ways from December.
The Capitals have dropped six of the last seven contests, but despite the team's struggles, there is confidence that things are headed in the right direction.
Tom Wilson and Rasmus Sandin, who missed Tuesday's contest against the New York Rangers due to illness and injury respectively, are also expected to return to the mix and provide a boost. Combine that with Ryan Leonard being back in the lineup, and D.C. is in better shape.
Now, it's just a matter of sticking to the process and bearing down when it comes to generating offense. Despite recent struggles, the Capitals, who remain without Pierre-Luc Dubois, sit second in the league in goals per game and third in scoring chances for per game at 5-on-5 (2.92, 30.35).
Washington faces the Devils at 7 p.m. ET.