Washington Capitals (24-19-6) @ Colorado Avalanche (33-5-8)
2 p.m. MT | Ball Arena | Watch: TNT, TruTV, HBO Max | Listen: Altitude Sports Radio (92.5 FM)
The Avalanche continues its homestand with a game against the Washington Capitals on Monday. This is the first of two regular-season meetings between the teams, as they’ll play in Washington, D.C. on March 22nd.
Latest Result (COL): NSH 7, COL 3
Latest Result (WSH): FLA 5, WSH 2
Defeat at Home
The Avalanche lost to the Nashville Predators 7-3 on Friday at Ball Arena. Brock Nelson scored twice and Martin Necas added a goal for Colorado. Ryan O’Reilly opened the scoring at 30 seconds of the first period with a backhand shot from the doorstep. At 1:24 of the opening frame, Nelson tied the game with his 23rd goal of the season via a backhand shot from the doorstep. O’Reilly gave Nashville a 2-1 lead at 7:32 of the first period when his pass from the right goal line deflected into the net. Nelson tied the game at 11:16 of the first period with his second goal of the game and 24th of the season via a redirection on Josh Manson’s shot. At 13:01 of the second period, O’Reilly completed his hat trick with a redirect and gave Nashville a 3-2 lead. Michael Bunting doubled Nashville’s lead at 18:04 of the second period with a left-circle shot off the rush. Necas cut Colorado’s deficit in half at 1:09 of the third period with a shot from the high slot set up by Nathan MacKinnon. Filip Forsberg gave Nashville a 5-3 lead with a power-play goal via a right-circle shot at 15:13 of the third period. The Predators took a 6-3 lead when Steven Stamkos scored an empty-net goal at 17:04 of the third period and Michael McCarron scored a short-handed empty-netter to make it 7-3 at 17:41.
Leading the Way
Nate the Great
MacKinnon leads the NHL in goals (36) while ranking second in points (82) and tied for third in assists (46).
All Hail Cale
Cale Makar leads NHL defensemen in points (53) while ranking second in assists (39) and third in goals (13) by blueliners. Among all NHL skaters, he’s tied for eighth in assists.
Marty Party
Necas is tied for eighth in the NHL in points (58).
Series History
In 43 previous regular-season games against the Capitals, the Avalanche has a record of 19-20-2-2.
A Loss to Florida
The Capitals lost 5-2 to the Florida Panthers at Capital One Arena on Saturday. In the opening frame, A.J. Greer put the Panthers on the board first at 13:23. Washington’s Jakob Chychrun gave the Capitals a 2-1 lead after second-period goals at 2:04 and 10:04. The Panthers took a 3-2 second-period lead after a goal from Sam Bennett at 11:40 and a power-play tally from Uvis Balinskis at 15:16. In the third period, the Panthers made it 5-2 after empty-net goals from Anton Lundell at 18:40 and Carter Verhaeghe at 19:26.
Capitalizing Against the Capitals
MacKinnon has posted 28 points (11g/17a) in 21 games against the Capitals.
In nine contests against Washington, Makar has recorded seven points (2g/5a).
Necas has registered 17 points (6g/11a) in 16 games against the Capitals.
Capitals’ Contributors
John Carlson leads the Capitals in assists (29) and is third in points (38).
Alex Ovechkin is second on the Capitals in goals (20) and points (41) while ranking tied for third in assists (21).
Dylan Strome is second on the Capitals in assists (25) while ranking fourth in points (36) and fifth in goals (11).
A Numbers Game
24
With two goals on Friday, Nelson tied Dustin Brown for the 24th-most goals by an American player (325).
70
MacKinnon is three points away from becoming the 70th player in NHL history to record 1,100 points.
8
Brent Burns is one goal from tying Bobby Orr for the eighth-most tallies by a defenseman in NHL history (270).
Quote That Left a Mark
“It just goes back to closing guys and a lot of [defensive]-zone stuff. When we’re at our best, playing in our [defensive] zone is kind of what generates our offense and getting those pucks back, eliminating those plays early. For us, especially on the backend, we have an important role. We have to shut down plays in the corners and not just play man-on-man and follow guys around. That’s kind of what we’ve been doing here as of late. There’s been times where we’ve been good, but we [have to] make sure we are more consistent with it.”
-- Cale Makar on making defensive adjustments
