The Matchup: New Jersey Devils (38-34-2) @ Washington Capitals (38-28-9)
The Time: 7:30pm ET
The Broadcast: Hulu, ESPN+, Devils Hockey Radio Network
Last Devils Game
A dismal 4-1 loss to the New York Rangers at MSG on Tuesday. Connor Brown was the long goal-scorer, while Jacob Markstrom played poorly and then delivered the most notable part of the night: A goalie fight with Igor Shesterkin.
Last Capitals Game
Washington was also in action on Tuesday, and they won a high-scoring affair against the Philadelphia Flyers by a score of 6-4.
The big story in that game was Alex Ovechkin scoring twice and reaching the 30-goal plateau for the millionth time in his career.
Last Devils-Capitals Game
It wasn’t that long ago. On March 20, the Devils dropped a lifeless 2-1 decision to the Capitals in Washington. It was yet another pathetic showing from the offense.
Going Through The Motions
The Devils really went through the motions on Tuesday, and it’s easy to see why. Their season is over. It’s been over for a while now. The math hasn’t explicitly eliminated New Jersey yet, but it will soon. The Devils enter tonight 10 points out of the second wild card spot, which is currently held down by the Columbus Blue Jackets (who have the same amount of wins as the Devils, just to twist the knife even further). With eight games left, there’s just nothing left to play for as far as postseason dreams are concerned. And New Jersey has only themselves to blame.
Last game certainly looked like a team that was lacking in all motivation. They had beaten the Rangers by identical 6-3 scores in the first two matchups of the season, but did not bring one ounce of energy to Tuesday’s battle until Jacob Markstrom fought Igor Shesterkin. Even with nothing left to play for on both sides, you would’ve figured a rivalry game would provide a little spark for the club. Not so.
Then again, the Devils have managed to win a decent amount of games since the Olympic break, so maybe I’m being a little too hard on them. After all, since dropping their first two games out of the break, New Jersey has won 10 of 15 contests. This includes a genuinely impressive win in Dallas against the Stars. But by and large, the Devils have been beating up on bad teams and losing to the good ones. Aside from Dallas, the only other wins that have come against quality opponents have been against the Boston Bruins and Nashville Predators (and no, I’m not counting a Los Angeles Kings team that has 29 wins and 44 losses). That’s about it. When the Devils have played a decent to good team since the Olympics, like the Sabres or Penguins or Red Wings or Capitals or Hurricanes, they’ve lost.
So it seems that these days, the Devils are a team that can usually beat up on bad teams (Tuesday notwithstanding), but can’t hang with the good teams. Washington might not be a great team, but they’re a good one that enters tonight’s game just three points back of a playoff spot. They have everything to play for, so expect a lot of fire out of them this evening. We can only hope the Devils reignite their own fire before puck drop.
Gritsyuk On The Horizon?
The only notable update around the team is the status of rookie winger Arseny Gritsyuk. He hasn’t played since the win in Dallas on March 24, and while he was originally labeled as “week-to-week”, Gritsyuk might be getting close to a return:
Even with the season long since lost, I would love to see Gritsyuk come back soon and finish the year strong. It’s already been a promising rookie campaign for Gritsyuk, who will need a new contract after the season is over. If he can come back and impress in the last handful of games to close out the regular season, it will give both him and the Devils (not to mention Devils fans) a lot of confidence and hope going into next year. I don’t expect to see him tonight, but you never know.
The Last Dance?
There is a good chance the Washington Capitals – one year removed from finishing with the best record in the Eastern Conference – miss the playoffs altogether. As mentioned earlier, they sit three points back with 75 games played. They trail the Blue Jackets for the final wild card spot, although third in the Metropolitan Division is still up for grabs as well, as they only trail the New York Islanders by four points for that slot. And the Capitals have a game in hand on New York as well. So Washington is still very much alive, but they’re running out of time.
Whether they make it or not, one of the big questions around the team is if this really is it for franchise legend Alex Ovechkin. The 40-year-old just reached the 30-goal plateau for a breathtaking 20th time in his career. There has only been one lone season in Ovechkin’s career where he did not reach 30 goals, and that was the 56-game Covid-shortened 2021 season in which Ovechkin tallied 24 goals in 45 games, which certainly would have put him over 30 if it was a normal season.
The point is, Ovechkin appears to still have plenty left in the tank, but certainly not anywhere close to as much as he once did. And at 40 years of age, and in the final year of his contract, this might really be it for him. He still has not announced an official decision, but he surely will soon. Especially if Washington fails to qualify for the playoffs. So if anything, the Capitals might be extra motivated to go on a run to help give their captain one last ride in the postseason.
In addition to Ovechkin, there is plenty of other reason to believe a changing of the guard is taking place in Washington. Franchise icon John Carlson was traded to the Anaheim Ducks at the deadline after spending 17 seasons with the Capitals. Meanwhile Tom Wilson, who has been playing the role of skilled goon in Washington for 13 seasons now, is 31-years-old. He’s certainly not at the end of his career, but he’s on the back nine for sure.
These franchise staples are giving way to the likes of Connor McMichael, Aliaksai Protas (who we might not see tonight due to injury), Jakob Chychrun, Ryan Leonard, and Cole Hutson, who just signed his ELC. For a long time now, us Devils fans have had to watch players like Ovechkin, Wilson, Carlson, and the now-retired Nicklas Backstrom wreak havoc for the Capitals. That core is just about gone, and tonight might be the very last time we see Alex Ovechkin play hockey against the Devils. If nothing else, there’s that bit of history that makes this game interesting.
Your Take
What do you make of tonight’s game? What are your thoughts on potentially seeing Ovechkin for the very last time against the Devils? What do you expect out of the Capitals tonight? As always, thanks for reading!
