Capitals vs. Blues: Tale Of The Tape, Lines, Who To Watch

The Washington Capitals are in the throes of a rough patch and overall tough road swing, and it won’t be any easier as they face the St. Louis Blues to close out the trip on Thursday.

Here’s how things stack up between the two clubs, who haven’t gotten off to the starts they’ve wanted.

Washington Capitals vs. St. Louis Blues: Tale Of The Tape

Washington (7-9-2) is coming off another disappointing loss, this time in the form of a 5-2 defeat to the Florida Panthers following a rather brutal 6-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning to kick off the club’s three-game tenure away from home. The power play has gone 0-for-20 over its last four contests, and there doesn’t seem to be a lot of chemistry or ability to produce at 5-on-5, either.

Meanwhile, St. Louis is starting to heat up after a brutal start to the campaign. Although the Blues currently sit second-to-last in the Pacific, they’ve won their last four games and have seen their stars get back on track. Also, they are only three points behind the Colorado Avalanche for third place in the division. On Wednesday, St. Louis defeated 5-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks and enters the second game of a back-to-back on a hot streak.

So, it won’t be an easy contest for D.C., but the team is hoping that it can finish the road swing on a high note (no pun intended, but kind of intended).

Washington Capitals Projected Lineup

The Capitals have lost three of their last four games and have shaken things up.. Nicolas Aube-Kubel has one more game left to serve of a three-game suspension. Here are the lines from morning skate, per The Washington Post’s Samantha Pell.

Alex Ovechkin-Evgeny Kuznetsov-Aliaksei Protas

Sonny Milano-Dylan Strome-Conor Sheary

Connor McMichael-Lars Eller-Anthony Mantha

Marcus Johansson-Nic Dowd-Garnet Hathaway

Erik Gustafsson-John Carlson

Martin Fehervary-Nick Jensen

Trevor van Riemsdyk-Matt Irwin

Dmitry Orlov (lower-body) remains on the IR, but made the trip.

Charlie Lindgren will get a chance to draw in and face his former club.

Washington Capitals vs. St. Louis Blues: Names To Watch

When it comes to names to watch for Washington, look out for Dylan Strome, who has four points in his last five games and got things going at even strength on Tuesday. Anthony Mantha is also on a three-game point streak, and John Carlson also has three points in his last three games since returning from injury.

On the St. Louis side, Ryan O’Reilly has points in three straight games, so keep an eye on him. Also, Jordan Kyrou is starting to heat back up and has points in three of his last four games. In addition, Ivan Barbashev has goals in two of his last three outings.

Washington Capitals vs. St. Louis Blues: Important Stats & Quick Hits

• The Blues have the sixth-worst penalty kill (72.4 percent) in the league, so the Capitals will have a big opportunity to put the PP woes behind them.
• St. Louis also surrenders the sixth-most goals per game (3.57). However, Washington has surrendered at least four goals in four of its last five contests.
• Carlson will play in career game No. 900 against STL.
• This will be Alex Ovechkin’s 23rd career game against the Blues. In those games, he has racked up 18 goals and 13 assists for 31 points. He’s looking for his first goal in three games.

How To Watch Washington Capitals vs. St. Louis Blues

All of the action will be live on NBC Sports Washington for DMV viewers. For those in Missouri, the game will be on Bally Sports Midwest. The puck drops at 8 p.m. ET.