Caps extend season-best win streak to 4 games despite injuries originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
The Capitals activated Dmitry Orlov ahead of Sunday’s game against the Winnipeg Jets and still managed to finish the day with more players on Injured Reserve than they had when it began.
Darcy Kuemper and Alex Alexeyev landed on IR in two of several roster moves the Capitals (14-12-4) made prior to puck drop. They were the 10th and 11th players Washington has been forced to place on IR this season including seven others who remained sidelined. That didn’t even include Erik Gustafsson, who left morning skate with an upper-body injury and didn’t suit up Sunday.
Yet amid this recent string of injuries, the Capitals are playing some of their best hockey of the season. They jumped out to a 4-0 lead on the way to a 5-2 victory over the Jets, extending their active winning streak to four games. They’re 7-2-1 over their last 10 despite Kuemper, Alexeyev and Martin Fehervary all hitting the shelf during that stretch.
Between T.J. Oshie returning from an 11-game absence at the front end of that run and Orlov rejoining the Capitals on Sunday after being out 16 games, the Capitals have gotten some reinforcements back as well. But after injuries played a significant role in them getting off to a poor start to the season, the Capitals have started to find ways to win anyway.
Nowhere has that been more evident than in net, where Charlie Lindgren has excelled in Kuemper’s absence. The 28-year-old has gone 4-0-0 with a .949 save percentage and 1.51 goals against average during the Capitals’ four-game win streak, starting every game between the pipes. Three of those games have come against teams currently in playoff position.
Kuemper could return for the Capitals at any time; the move to place him on IR was retroactive to his last appearance Dec. 3, meaning he will be eligible to play as soon as Tuesday’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks. But after Lindgren endured a shaky month of November, his play over the last two weeks has shown the Capitals they have a dependable backup goalie.
The blue line has been the side of their roster most impacted by recent injuries. With Gustafsson sitting out Sunday, Trevor van Riemsdyk and Nick Jensen are the only two defensemen to appear in every game for the Capitals this season. Orlov’s return reunited him with John Carlson as the top defensive pairing, but players such as Alexeyev and Matt Irwin have been thrust into starting roles. Lucas Johansen, with all of two games of NHL experience, was the next man up Sunday with Alexeyev going on IR.
Changing up their pairings almost every game, the Capitals have managed to limit opponents to just 29.4 shots per game over their last 10 contests — seventh lowest in the NHL over that span. According to Natural Stat Trick, they’ve allowed 7.4 high-danger chances per game as well, ranking second-best in the league just behind the Calgary Flames (7.3).
Washington has also enjoyed success on both sides of special teams. The Capitals’ win Sunday saw them score both on the power play and shorthanded. They’ve netted at least one power-play goal in nine of those last 10 games while killing penalties at a rate of 88.5%, which ranks as second-best in the league behind only the Dallas Stars (91.3%).
The offensive contributions have come from all across the roster. Alex Ovechkin leads the way with eight goals during this stretch, though four have been empty-netters. Evgeny Kuznetsov and Dylan Strome each have six assists while nine different players overall have recorded at least six points. The result? A goal differential of plus-10 and 15 points toward the standings.
Eventually, the Capitals will see Tom Wilson (torn ACL) rejoin their lineup and perhaps Nicklas Backstrom (hip) as well. Their absences, and those of several others, were painfully obvious early on this season. The Capitals have since started to adapt to life without their star forwards, leaning on those still healthy enough to play to keep them alive in the Eastern Conference.
