The Red Wings loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday, was their 6th straight loss at home. In those 6 games their record is 0-1-5. The Redwings haven't had a home losing streak this big since the 1996-97 season. Against the Jets, the Wings did have a season high 43 shots on goal but their lack of secondary scoring has been an issue this season. So far this season, they are scoring an average of 2.47 goals a game while their shaky defense is giving up an average of 2.58 goals per game.
Despite their recent home struggles, the Red Wings (who are new to the Eastern Conference) are tied in 2nd place of the Atlantic Division with Boston and only 3 points back of the 1st place Lightning.
Jimmy Howard is the projected starting goalie for the Wings. For the season he has a 2.67 goals against average and a .907 save percentage.
The Caps are coming off of a thrilling overtime victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets. After giving up a one goal lead in the 3rd period, the Caps fought back and tied the game with under 2 minutes left in regulation with a goal from Mikhail Grabovski. It was Alex Ovechkin who netted the overtime winner for his 14th goal of the season. He's now 2 goals shy of the leagues goal scoring leader, Alexander Steen. (They would
have been tied but Steen managed to score 2 more goals against Colombus Thursday)
Unlike the Red Wings, the Caps are getting consistent scoring outside of their 1st line. The second line of Brouwer, Laich and Johansson/Grabovski, has been a bit of a disappointment and fans are waiting for Brouwer and Laich to regain their previous scoring form. The 3rd line of Ward, Grabovski and Chimera has been arguably the most consistent line for the Caps this season. They are collecting goals at critical points of the game (i.e. Ward's shorthanded goal against the Blue Jackets) and are doing so through hard work and the chemistry they have developed. They very rarely lose a board battle and always seem to know where each other is on the ice. Look for Oates to deliver a heavy dose of line 1 and 3 against the struggling defense of the Red Wings.
Mike Green is questionable for the Red Wings game with a lower body injury that has been described by Oates as a bad bruise. The Caps have called upon Tyson Strachan as an insurance policy in case Green can't go.
The Caps are in the midst of a tough stretch of schedule and have fared better then expected. They have wins against tough teams like the Columbus Blue Jackets, Minnesota Wild and the New York Islanders. They beat the reigning Vezina trophy winner, Sergei Bobrovsky, in the Blue Jackets game and beat the leagues #1 ranked goalie, Josh Harding in the Minnesota Wild game. With a "W" against the Red Wings, the Caps could pull ahead of the 1st place Pittsburgh Penguins in their division.
Note: The 1st place Penguins are currently 1 point ahead of the Caps in the Metropolitan Division.
With both teams struggling somewhat on defense, this should be a high scoring affair and a fun game to watch. The Caps power play still ranks 1st in the league and is operating at 25.6%. The penalty kill is the leagues 2nd best at 89.2%.
Zach's Three Keys to the Game:
* Score first: Hopefully the Caps can put the first goal or two on the board and crush the momentum of the Red Wings.
* Defense: If the Caps can stay strong in their own end, there's no reason they shouldn't come away with 2 points. They need to stop Datsyuk and the Red Wing's 1st line. Shot blocking and taking away the shooting lanes will be key.
* Line 2: This would be a great game to see the Caps 2nd line of Brouwer, Laich and Johansson break out. They are all good skaters with hard shots and it's only a matter of time before they find the back of the net. If they can get creative and start scoring, the Caps could really start gaining some points in the leagues standings.
Go Caps!
Zach Hart
Shades of Red
With both teams struggling somewhat on defense, this should be a high scoring affair and a fun game to watch. The Caps power play still ranks 1st in the league and is operating at 25.6%. The penalty kill is the leagues 2nd best at 89.2%.
Zach's Three Keys to the Game:
* Score first: Hopefully the Caps can put the first goal or two on the board and crush the momentum of the Red Wings.
* Defense: If the Caps can stay strong in their own end, there's no reason they shouldn't come away with 2 points. They need to stop Datsyuk and the Red Wing's 1st line. Shot blocking and taking away the shooting lanes will be key.
* Line 2: This would be a great game to see the Caps 2nd line of Brouwer, Laich and Johansson break out. They are all good skaters with hard shots and it's only a matter of time before they find the back of the net. If they can get creative and start scoring, the Caps could really start gaining some points in the leagues standings.
Go Caps!
Zach Hart
Shades of Red
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