The last time the Capitals were in this arena, they were eliminated on Nick Bonino's overtime goal in Game 6. That brought an abrupt end to a season they believed would end with them raising the Cup after they won the Presidents' Trophy and set a Washington record with 56 wins.
The memory of that loss was impossible to avoid walking into PPG Paints Arena on Thursday.
"It's in your mind, but it's not like we can't win in this building. It's nothing like that," right wing T.J. Oshie said. "Coming in, it's a new year. Hats off to them for what they accomplished. It's something special. It's something that we all want to do. Now, it's a new year and we want it to be our turn. So, hopefully, we can set that tone tonight."
The Capitals know what they do in this first game won't matter nearly as much as what they do in their last one. No one has to remind them they have not advanced past the second round of the playoffs since they made their lone Stanley Cup Final appearance in 1998.
But seeing the Penguins raise their Stanley Cup banner will serve as a season-long reminder of what could have been and what they hope to achieve.
"This is something we think about every day," Backstrom said. "They beat us last year. It's the start of a new season and we play them in the first game, so it's pretty special. It's something that, hopefully we can get fired up from this and it will motivate us."