March 31 vs. Philadelphia Flyers at Capital One Arena
Time: 7:00 p.m.
TV: MNMT
Radio: 106.7 THE FAN/Caps Radio Network
Philadelphia Flyers (37-24-12)
Washington Capitals (37-28-9)
Back from their last extended road trip of the season, the Caps make a quick stop at home to host the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night. Tuesday’s game concludes the March portion of the Caps’ schedule; Washington enters the game with a 6-4-2 record thus far this month.
After dropping the first game of a three-game western trip a week ago in St. Louis, the Caps finished the trip with a flourish, earning comeback victories in Utah and Vegas, respectively. The trip-closing victories marked the first time Washington put together consecutive road victories since it forged a four-game road winning streak from Nov. 20-Dec. 3.
Washington dug out of a two-goal hole in the second period to win 7-4 in Utah. On Saturday in Vegas, the Caps built a 3-0 lead by the midpoint of the second period, with one of the goals coming on the power play. But Vegas struck for a pair of shorthanded goals – including ex-Cap Nic Dowd’s first goal as a Golden Knight – on the same Washington power play to shave the lead to a single goal.
When Jack Eichel scored the Knights’ third goal in as many shots in less than three minutes, the game was even at 3-3. Vegas took a 4-3 lead early in the third on a power play of its own, but the Caps’ beleaguered extra-man unit came through with a second power-play goal – from Dylan Strome later in the third period – to push the game to overtime, and Washington ultimately won a 5-4 shootout decision.
“We knew we were tied going into the third,” says Strome. “And [Caps coach Spencer Carbery] had a good speech in between the second and third and just said, ‘The first 40 minutes just does not matter. Good or bad, it doesn’t matter; we’ve got a period to win a game.’
“And we needed 65-plus [minutes], but I thought we did a good job of regrouping, and we didn’t let their power-play goal at the start of the third get us down. We created some chances and found a way to get that game tied. Obviously, that’s the biggest two points of our season.”
The Caps lost winger Aliaksei Protas late in the first period of the Vegas game; the big winger got the worst of an inadvertent head-to-head collision with a bloodied Dowd, who returned in the second and scored his shorthanded goal in that period. Protas did not return.
“He is going to miss a little bit of time,” says Carbery of Protas. “Won’t play [Tuesday] and then we’ll sort of assess later in the week.”
Tuesday’s Metro Division tilt between the Caps and Flyers is a massive match for both teams, who are meeting for the fourth time in a span of 56 days. Philadelphia won each of the games played in its building this season, and the Caps won the previous meeting in the District, taking a 3-1 decision here on Feb. 25 in the first game following the NHL’s pause for the 2026 Winter Olympic Games.
All three games in the season series between Washington and Philadelphia have been tight, low-event, low-scoring affairs, and all three games have featured at least one empty-net goal in the waning minutes. The Caps have scored six goals in three games against Philly this season, scoring once shorthanded, once on the power play and once into an empty net, in addition to the three goals they’ve scored at 5-on-5 against the Flyers’ stingy and sturdy defense.
“Definitely that will be a main focus,” says Carbery of the need to generate offense. “And you’ve got to tip your cap to them because they're sort of like, I compare them to St Louis after the [Olympic] break, where you look at their film and their underlying numbers, and they're not giving teams very much at all; there is a real commitment to defending.
“Now, goaltending as well plays a big part in that. I was watching the game [against Dallas Sunday] night. [Flyers goalie Samuel] Ersson, since the Olympic break, has completely flipped his season around. [Philly goalie] Vladar, I think, has been strong all year long, so that's played a little bit of a part in the goals against, but even the underlying numbers, the chances given up [are low].
“So, we're going to have to really, really work to create. And in these games – and Vegas is similar too, because they don't give up a bunch, either – I think the key is number one, staying patient. And two, it's going to be one play here or there. So, a power play, a penalty kill here or there, a good forecheck or a sustained [offensive] zone. Can you out-change them one time to where you create an odd man situation? Because those are going to be few and far between. So, one small moment in the game could make the difference in the outcome.”
At 12-4-1, Philadelphia boasts the third-best record in the entire League since the Olympic pause; only Buffalo (.824) and St. Louis (.800) have fashioned better point percentages than Philly (.735) over that span.
The Flyers enter Tuesday’s game with a three-game winning streak, six wins in their last seven games (6-1-0) and eight victories in their last 10 contests (8-1-1). Philly is getting it done with defense; it has allowed just 2.24 goals per game – the second-best rate in the NHL – since the Olympic break. Philly has averaged just 2.65 goals for per game across the same stretch, and that ties the Flyers with Calgary for 26th place in the League.
Most recently, the Flyers extended their winning streak to three with a 2-1 overtime win over Dallas on Sunday night in Philly. Trevor Zegras scored the game-winner in the extra session for the Flyers and Ersson made 17 saves for the win.
Beginning with a 4-1 victory over the Caps in Philadelphia on March 11, the Flyers have permitted two or fewer goals against in seven of their last 10 games (8-1-1).
