Here's how the Capitals figure to line up against the Lightning for their final game before the holiday break.

WASHINGTON — The Washington Capitals will have Charlie Lindgren between the pipes against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday to close things out before the holiday break, as Darcy Kuemper will back up after taking maintenance.

Kuemper was not on the ice for Saturday's morning skate.

In other lineup news, Connor McMichael will make his return after missing the last two games with an illness that was making its rounds through the room. He will reclaim his spot at second-line center between Anthony Mantha and Aliaksei Protas.

As a result, Hendrix Lapierre will remain in but work on the third line and pay wing alongside Evgeny Kuznetsov and Ivan Miroshnichenko. Matthew Phillips will be the odd man out upfront.

Here are the projected lines:

Alex Ovechkin-Dylan Strome-Tom Wilson

Aliaksei Protas-Connor McMichael-Anthony Mantha

Ivan Miroshnichenko-Evgeny Kuznetsov-Hendrix Lapierre

Beck Malenstyn-Nic Dowd-Nicolas Aube-Kubel

Martin Fehervary-John Carlson

Rasmus Sandin-Trevor van Riemsdyk

Joel Edmundson-Nick Jensen

Darcy Kuemper

Charlie Lindgren

In injury news, Max Pacioretty, who is working his way back from a second torn Achilles in a span of five months, has been taking contact and is expected back shortly after the break, with next week's games within the realm of possibility.

Sonny Milano and T.J. Oshie, who are dealing with respective upper and lower-body ailments, remain on injured reserve and will also make their return after the break, though there's no concrete timeline. Milano skated in a non-contact jersey. Meanwhile, Oshie did not skate as he turned 37 on Saturday.

Ethan Bear, who is not yet signed due to the holiday freeze, is expected to sign his deal — which is reportedly for two years and in the $2 million neighborhood — shortly after the break and make his return soon as well.

Bear has been recovering from offseason shoulder surgery since the offseason and officially joined the Capitals on Wednesday, skating with them at their optional morning skate before their game against the New York Islanders.

Nicklas Backstrom remains on an indefinite leave of absence and is unlikely to return this season. His hip has not responded as he'd hoped following resurfacing surgery in June 2022, but he has not made any decisions regarding retirement yet.

Washington faces Tampa at 7 p.m. ET at Capital One Arena.