Caps Finish Trip in Manhattan on Monday
The Caps conclude a three-game road trip and start a home-and-home set of games against the Rangers on Monday in New York
By
Mike Vogel
WashingtonCaps.com
The Capitals conclude a three-game road trip on Monday night against the Rangers in New York, a game that also starts a home-and-home set between the two Metropolitan Division rivals. Washington and New York will meet again on Wednesday night in the District at Capital One Arena in the final game between the two teams this season.
Facing the Rangers for the first time in nearly three months, the Caps will be looking to run the table on the road trip. They earned a 1-0 win over the Red Wings in Detroit on Thursday and followed up with a 6-4 victory over the Canadiens in Montreal on Saturday.
Returning to the lineup after missing three games because of an upper body injury, Evgeny Kuznetsov scored a pair of power-play goals - including the game-winner early in the third period - in Washington's win over Montreal. Nicklas Backstrom assisted on both Kuznetsov goals and on each of Tom Wilson's two goals as well, recording the 11th four-assist game of his NHL career in the process.
Caps center Jay Beagle also scored as a Washington pivot was involved in each of the team's first five goals on Saturday. But for the Canadiens, having to defend both Kuznetsov and Backstrom proved to be too much.
Washington scored a total of eight goals in the three games Kuznetsov missed, winning twice. It has scored 19 goals in the last three games in which he has played, winning all three. Despite missing those three games, Kuznetsov is tied for the team scoring lead since the All-Star break with 28 points (10 goals, 18 assists) in just 23 games. Kuznetsov has two goals and seven points in his last three games.
"Just the talent that Kuzy brings to the game, you can't really replace it," says Caps right wing T.J. Oshie, who netted his 17th goal of the season in the win over the Habs. "I think we had [Andre Burakovsky] and Lars [Eller] step in, and they did a pretty good job. But Kuzy is Kuzy. You can see when he skates with the puck, he opens up so much offensively with his skating and with his hockey sense. It's nice to have him back."
The Caps' six-goal offensive outburst overcame a sluggish start and a flawed finish. A successful coach's challenge prevented the Habs from taking a 2-0 lead before the first period was halfway over, and Washington quickly seized momentum and control of the game with three goals on just four shots on net in a span of seven minutes over the back half of the first frame.
Washington also had a 6-2 lead early in the third, but the Habs were able to close to within two with a pair of late goals.
"I just thought we were real loose with the puck and defensively we were not real great," says Caps coach Barry Trotz, who earned his 200th win as the Caps' bench boss on Saturday in Montreal.
The two points is what mattered most for the Caps, and now they will seek to win a third straight road game for the first time this season when they take on the Rangers in New York.
"We've just got to be better," says Trotz. "Our starts have to be better. After a day off, we tend to not come out very well. That's just a tendency of our group. We've at least got to get ramped up a little bit and play a little more emotional. When we have a little bite to our game, we play much better."
The Caps are aiming to sweep a road trip of three or more games in length for the first time in more than two years, since Jan. 5-9, 2016.
Washington's road trip to Original Six cities finds each of the three opponents teetering on the verge of mathematical elimination from the playoff chase. Detroit and Montreal have been eliminated, and the Rangers' tragic number is down to three. But sometimes the teams with nothing to play for in the standings can be wild cards to play against at this point of the season.
"With teams that are in the position that they are," says Wilson, referring to the Canadiens after Saturday's victory, "they come out flying and they're playing loose hockey, they're feeling good about their skill game and their finesse. It's important in our position to get the first goal and get the upper hand and put your foot down, because if you make it easy on them, they're just going to feel better and better throughout the game.
"You've got to be careful with teams like that. They're playing good hockey and guys are playing for jobs. It's a tough time of year when you're going from [facing] playoff opponents to teams that are out, and teams that are right on the brink. I thought we did a pretty good job at times, and you see some glimpses of real good hockey from us, but I think we can keep working at putting 60 [minutes] together."
The Rangers ascended the Metro standings ladder in November and December when their schedule was laden with home games, and they've tumbled in a southerly direction with the resulting preponderance of road games in the season's second half. The Rangers are a respectable 21-14-4 at home, but they're just 12-20-4 away from Manhattan. Only Montreal, Ottawa and Arizona own fewer road victories than the Blueshirts.
Since Washington last visited The Big Apple on Dec. 27, the New York roster has undergone a significant overhaul. Trades have sent longtime Rangers Rick Nash to Boston and Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller to Tampa Bay, and New York also dealt away Michael Graber to New Jersey and Nick Holden to Boston.
On Sunday, the Rangers announced the recall of each of their top two draft choices from last summer's draft. Centers Lias Andersson and Filip Chytil have both been summoned from AHL Hartford and the two teenaged pivots are expected to be available for duty on Monday against Washington.
