Washington Capitals

Washington Capitals

The Caps made some moves in the right direction in Edmonton, Thompson chats goalie masks and goalie fights and more in today's clips. A few leftovers from Saturday night's loss in Edmonton. [WaPo ($), RMNB] The Washington Capitals took a step in the right direction on Saturday, but they need to treat it as a true turning point on their road trip and the rest of the season. [THN]

Sandin was hurt with just 19 seconds remaining in the first frame, absorbing a hit from Oilers forward Curtis Lazar against the boards. After getting up slowly, Sandin got back into position and made a big shot block on defender Ty Emberson with the inside of his leg. The 25-year-old Swede needed assistance to get back to the team's bench once the horn sounded to end the period.

The Washington Capitals have lost four games in a row, and their latest defeat was a brutal one. After going up 2-0 against the winless-in-their-last-11-games Vancouver Canucks, the Caps allowed four unanswered goals and ultimately fell 4-3. A wise man once said, "So, s***'s not going right, it's not f***ing working the last 10 days. F***ing make it work by outworking the opposition." The Capitals controlled the majority of five-on-five play and, for once, got two goals in the same game from their power play.

"I liked Dowd's line," Carbery said postgame. "I thought O and Frankie, and that line was really, really effective."

The road trip kicks off on a losing note, how do you solve a problem like no PLD and more in today's Caps Clips.

For two periods this afternoon, the Capitals actually hung with the league-leading Avalanche - largely thanks to a stand-up performance by Charlie Lindgren. That was the case really until Artturi Lehkonen's goal late in the third, when it became clear that the Caps just didn't have the firepower to match Colorado punch for punch. Plus: They won a goalie interference challenge for the first time since color TV was invented.

The Washington Capitals are free fallin' down the standings. Already three points out of the final wild-card spot in the East, our dear Caps are facing a difficult six-game road trip that takes them out west and into Canada. Their first test will come against the NHL's best team by a country mile the Colorado Avalanche, who had 10 more standings points than any other team coming in today.

Leason's loan to Hershey comes ahead of Tom Wilson's likely return to the team's lineup after missing seven games with a lower-body injury. Wilson remains on injured reserve for the time being, but can be activated whenever the Caps deem necessary, with a roster spot now open. Leason played six games for the Capitals in his second NHL stint with the team and first since his rookie 2021-22 season. He did not record a point and averaged 8:34 of ice time per game.

Miroshnichenko arrives back in DC after playing two games for the Capitals in December before being returned to the Bears, firing three shots on goal and averaging 9:38 of ice time. The 2022 first-round draft pick has seven points (2g, 5a) in eight AHL games since then, including a two-point (1g, 1a) effort against the Cleveland Monsters last weekend. The 21-year-old Russian signed a two-year contract extension with the Capitals on Halloween.

The Caps host the Sharks, there's potentially good news on the injury front, the PWHL tour brings some hometown connections and more in today's Caps Clips. Your savory breakfast links: Previews of tonight's visit from the Sharks from Vogs, AP, and FLM, and be sure to swing by our pals over at Fear the Fin for the view from behind enemy lines. Checking in with the team after yesterday's practice, where it looks like at least two of the sick/injured guys may be ready to return.

Just as the Capitals began their first power play, Josh Anderson scored a shorthanded goal, the one score of the first period. Brendan Gallagher doubled Montreal's lead thanks to a crisp pass from Philip Danault. Matt Roy unleashed an outside shot that Ethen Frank grazed to break the shutout. Frank did it again with two minutes left, a dramatic redirect from the slot. Connor McMichael slam-dunked it overtime. Caps win

Plus: Down Wilson, Sourdif and Chychrun, the Capitals were able to dig deep and give one of their most spirited efforts of the season in the third to pull off a game that looked D.O.A from the outset.

INJURY UPDATE: Hershey Bears forward Eriks Mateiko underwent a surgical procedure to repair his right Achilles tendon yesterday afternoon following a skate blade laceration during Sunday's game in Hershey. Based on the nature of the procedure, Mateiko will miss the remainder of... pic.twitter.com/KkhWWpIhk7 - Hershey Bears (@TheHersheyBears) January 13, 2026

Sourdif's three lead the way over the Ducks, there's (relatively) good injury news on Wilson and more in today's Caps Clips. Your savory breakfast links: Here are three Caps who need to step up in 2026 (spoiler alert - two of those three had big nights last night). [THW] The Caps got some relatively good news on Tom Wilson, who is now listed merely day-to-day with a lower-body injury and joins Aliaksei Protas in the "hopefully back soon" camp. [SI]

What Mac does for us, and what he does as a player, and what he's done through his career goes so much further than the physical part of the game. There's so many things that he brings to our group. And I'm not even talking about on the ice. I'm talking about in the locker room, his energy, his buy-in, how much he cares, how hard he competes. So that's evaluated every day.