Ovechkin says Capitals moving in ‘right direction’ after slow start

ARLINGTON, Va. -- Alex Ovechkin has scored two goals, T.J. Oshie has none and the Washington Capitals offense has sputtered in general through the first 10 games of this season.

Still, the Capitals believe they’re beginning to find their game heading into a matchup against the Florida Panthers, the reigning Eastern Conference champions, at Capital One Arena on Wednesday (7:30 p.m. ET; TNT, MAX).

Adjusting to a new system under first-year coach Spencer Carbery, Washington (5-4-1) has won four of its past five games after going 1-3-1 in its first five.

“I think we’re moving in the right direction,” Ovechkin, the Capitals captain, said Tuesday. “Every time when a change in the coaching staff is coming and new players come in, it’s a new system, we need more than just five games and the preseason games. Obviously, it’s a different pace, a different atmosphere, but right now I think we’re getting closer to how we want to be.”

Ovechkin and the Capitals’ offensive struggles have gotten the most attention. Washington is 31st in the NHL with an average of 1.90 goals per game and have scored more than two goals just twice in their first 10 games. Forwards Dylan Strome (six) and Tom Wilson (three) are the only Capitals to score more than two goals.

Ovechkin led Washington with 44 goals in 73 games last season and Oshie was third with 19, despite being limited to 58 games because of a recurring back injury. But they’ve yet to find their scoring rhythm this season.

Ovechkin scored the first of his two goals on the power play in a 4-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Oct. 24, and the other was an empty-net goal against the New Jersey Devils on Oct. 25.

“It’s still early and I think younger players and older players are adjusting here,” general manager Brian MacLellan said. “I think he’s getting looks and I think they’ll eventually go on in for him.”

Although Ovechkin is second in NHL history with 824 goals, 70 behind Wayne Gretzky's NHL record of 894, the 38-year-old left wing has battled through similar slow starts in his previous 18 NHL seasons. Ovechkin scored two goals through his first 10 games in 2008-09 and 2012-13 and went on to lead the League in goals in each season, with 56 in 2008-09 and 32 in the 48-game 2012-13 season.

As in 2012-13, when Adam Oates was in his first season with Washington, Ovechkin is adjusting to a new coach and a different system but believes there is more he can do. He had three shots on goal, hit the post on one shot and the crossbar on another in a 2-1 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday to go without a goal for the fourth straight game.

“I’m having chances, but sometimes you just have to look at yourself and think what you should do differently,” Ovechkin said. “Sometimes you’re kind of like, ‘Don’t, wait, the puck goes there,' but (then) the puck is over there and you’re kind of like, ‘[Expletive], better if I take one more step ... ’

“But I think it’s just a period of time when sometimes it’s just not on your side, not in your way, bad luck and whatever.”

Injuries, which plagued the Capitals last season when they missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2014, have been an issue again. MacLellan said Monday that center Nicklas Backstrom is unlikely to play again this season because of continued problems with his surgically repaired left hip.

Defenseman Joel Edmundson (broken hand) and left wing Max Pacioretty (torn Achilles) have yet to play a game this season. Edmundson has resumed skating and could return to practice Thursday; Pacioretty started skating on his own last week, but there is no timetable for when he might play.

On the positive side, the Capitals have been finding ways to win games with strong goaltending and defense, averaging 1.75 goals against in their past four games, and an improved penalty kill, which is 12-for-12 in the past five games after allowing at least one power-goal in each of their first five.

“I think we’ve been doing a lot of really good things,” Wilson said. “Obviously we can put the puck in the net a little bit more, but as far as a total group kind of identity, we feel good about our game, and we’ve got to keep building that. Obviously there was a lot of new coming into this year, but the foundation seems to be in place.”

MacLellan believes the offense will begin to produce more as the players get more comfortable with Carbery’s system, which stresses puck possession.

“I think we’re evolving,” MacLellan said. “The style of play has changed. I think we’ve had some ups and downs. I think, you know, there’s positive trends lately. You see some players, their games elevating. We’re becoming more consistent both defensively and offensively. I’m reasonably optimistic that we continue it going forward.”

It would help if the Capitals power play got going. Washington is 3-for-31 with the man-advantage and tied with the Dallas Stars for 30th in the NHL with a 9.7 percent success rate. The Capitals also have been adapting to some changes to their power play under first-year assistant Kirk Muller, who oversees the power play, and Carbery.

Ovechkin holds the NHL record with 300 power-play goals, 127 of them on his familiar one-timer from the left circle, so the Capitals are looking for ways to unleash that part of his game.

“Some of it is passing, our passing on the power play, passes to him,” Carbery said. “But also, he can help that as well by getting his feet set, being able to adjust off certain passes, seeing a play that’s about to come. So we’re just a little bit off.”