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WASHINGTON CAPITALS VS CAROLINA HURRICANES- 7:30PM EDT/4:30PM PDT- (Series tied 3-3)
It’s probably a good thing that this game is the only one on the schedule, because after last night’s San Jose/Vegas tilt, I am not sure if people can handle another game with that kind of excitement.
And this one is going to register on the Richter Scale, believe me. Two teams that don’t like each other. One desperate to hang onto the title, the other one the ultimate Cinderella story, in a winner take all game, with no other contest it has to compete with. The eyes of the hockey world are locked in on this game, and it’s awesome.
What’s going to be interesting is watching Alexander Ovechkin tonight. His lack of composure in Game 6 was a contributing factor to the loss. If he loses focus again tonight, this is something that the Hurricanes can exploit. We’ve seen him lose his cool in the past, and it can get pretty ugly. Better keep your head on a swivel around Tom Wilson, though I suppose that’s just a given.
Getting off to a good start is always a key to victory, but especially in Game 7s. The team that scores first wins around 75% of the time, and up until Game 6, each of the games was one by the team that opened the scoring. The game is going to be physical, but they need to be smart. Staying out of the penalty box and especially not taking retaliatory penalties will be a huge factor tonight.
Here’s what we should see for the lineups tonight, via nhl.com:
Hurricanes projected lineup
Nino Niederreiter -- Sebastian Aho -- Teuvo Teravainen
Brock McGinn -- Jordan Staal -- Justin Williams
Warren Foegele -- Lucas Wallmark -- Jordan Martinook
Saku Maenalanen -- Greg McKegg -- Patrick Brown
Jaccob Slavin -- Dougie Hamilton
Brett Pesce -- Justin Faulk
Calvin de Haan -- Trevor van Riemsdyk
Petr Mrazek
Curtis McElhinney
Scratched: Haydn Fleury
Injured: Andrei Svechnikov (concussion), Micheal Ferland (upper body)
Capitals projected lineup
Alex Ovechkin -- Nicklas Backstrom -- Tom Wilson
Carl Hagelin -- Evgeny Kuznetsov -- Jakub Vrana
Andre Burakovsky -- Lars Eller -- Brett Connolly
Chandler Stephenson -- Nic Dowd -- Devante Smith-Pelly
Jonas Siegenthaler -- John Carlson
Dmitry Orlov -- Matt Niskanen
Brooks Orpik -- Nick Jensen
Braden Holtby
Pheonix Copley
Scratched: Christian Djoos, Travis Boyd, Dmitrij Jaskin, Parker Milner
Injured: Michal Kempny (torn left hamstring), T.J. Oshie (upper body)
Martinook is a game time decision. Ferland is “not playing”...no update on Svechnikov really. Sorry that this is anti climatic
— Sara Civ (@SaraCivian) April 24, 2019
Getting Svechnikov back would be huge, no doubt.
GAME DAY BATTLE HYMN
I haven’t had these guys on for a while, but with a new track dropping yesterday from their upcoming album ‘Old Star’, I figured it was time for some DARKTHRONE. Having morphed from their original death metal then black metal roots, the modern incarnation of the band drips with doomy classic metal and Celtic Frost vibes. It’s got such an old-school feel, and the mix is raw without feeling under-produced. I am looking forward to hearing the rest of this disc, but for now here’s ‘The Hardship Of The Scots’.