Courtesy: Eric Hartline – USA TODAY Sports
WASHINGTON — The last time the Washington Capitals and Philadelphia Flyers squared off Nov. 1, the storyline wasn’t the 7-0 blowout victory in favor of the visiting team from D.C., but rather the brawls that broke out between skaters and goaltenders alike.
Philadelphia is a much different team this time around, but still find themselves toward the bottom of the Metropolitan Division in sixth place. Despite their ranking, they are just six points behind the second place Capitals who are looking to bounce back into the win column after a poor performance in Sunrise, Florida against the Panthers.
The 3-2 shootout loss was one where the Capitals were lucky to escape with a point. Young goalie Philipp Grubauer (2-0-1, 1.52 GAA, .957 save pecentage) stood tall with 39 saves, but the rest of the squad failed to show up with as much desire and effort as the 22-year-old netminder. Washington has had trouble playing down to their competition in the past, but they should have no shortage of effort as one of their bitter rivals come to town for a Sunday mid-afternoon matinee.
Grubauer will once again get the call for the Capitals between the pipes as he makes his fourth appearance in Washington’s last four games. This is the German’s fourth career NHL start and third in the last eight days. Head coach Adam Oates has to be pleased with what Grubauer has shown as it’s given starter Braden Holtby some time to rest and recoup while backup goalie Michal Neuvirth does the same with the Hershey Bears in the AHL. Grubauer has displayed impressive flexibility and butterfly stops as he’s made several saves over the last week that have mirrored the game of Los Angeles Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick.
Brooks Laich will once again be missing in action as he continues to be hampered by a groin injury, but defenseman John Erskine likely will make a return to the lineup. It was a game-time decision as to who he would replace, but this will be Erskine’s first game back since his knee injury sidelined him following a contest Oct. 26 with the Calgary Flames. Nate Schmidt will likely be the odd man out as he will be replaced by Erskine.
Philadelphia has been a low-scoring team this season as they are 26th (2.2 goals-per-game) in the NHL in scoring entering this contest. Washington has been quite the contrary as they are 7th in the league in goals-per-game (2.9). The Flyers expected to be more assertive in their offensive approach with guys like Wayne Simmonds, Claude Giroux and Scott Hartnell, but they’ve had to rely on their physical nature and brawn in order to win games. A team like this usually gives the Capitals problems, but Washington got the best of them in their building last time these took the ice.
The Flyers are a team who takes pride in playing special teams, especially short-handed. While they are just one spot above the Capitals on the penalty kill — Washington is 13th in the NHL with an 82.9% success rate; Philadelphia is 12th with an 83.5% success rate — the the Flyers have always been a team to close down the shooting lanes and create breakaway opportunities when they’re man down. Washington can’t take this team lightly like they did against the Panthers as their fundamentals went array with lazy shifts that lead to giveaways in their own zone.
While it remains uncertain as to what the defensive pairs will look like for the game with Erskine’s return, this is a game where Mike Green has to show Oates he can still play at a high level. Green has been pedestrian and more of a detriment to the team over the past week. His past two games against the Panthers and the Tampa Bay Lightning are two of his worst career performances as they were characterized by simple mistakes, lackluster effort and careless penalties. Green got off of his scoreless snide Dec. 3 against the Carolina Hurricanes, but even his first goal of 2013-14 hasn’t sparked the offensive defenseman. Focus and keeping it simple are things tense players fail to do. With John Carlson emerging this season, Green’s game has seemingly taken a step back and it’s more than just the eye test as the numbers aren’t there for No. 52 either.
Captain Alexander Ovechkin will be another player to watch today as he played to a -1 rating against Florida and was doubled and held along the walls for most of the night. When Ovechkin gets frustrated, he usually responds like most great players do; look for the Russian to use his patented curl-and-drag up the left-side boards to try and penetrate the slot of Philadelphia and get prime scoring chances.
Notes: Steve Mason will get the start in goal for the Flyers (11-9-3, 2.29 GAA, .927 save percentage).Washington is 11-7-0 at Verizon Center this season; Philadelphia is 6-8-3 on the road. The Capitals are 74-97-19-5 all-time versus the Flyers and are 41-40-13-1 at home. Six of the last 12 games between these clubs have reached overtime. The Capitals have earned at least one point in seven of the last 10 contests against the Flyers. Washington will face this team two times in three nights as they will travel to Philadelphia Dec. 17 to face the Flyers Tuesday night.
