The Washington Capitals will meet a familiar face in the first round of this year’s playoffs and no, I’m not talking about Erik Gustafsson. After securing the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference, the Capitals were matched up with the Presidents’ Trophy-winning New York Rangers coached by Peter Laviolette. The very same Laviolette that departed DC at the culmination of last season, allowing Spencer Carbery to take the reins of the Capitals. “Didn’t think about it much to be honest with you,” Laviolette said Thursday. “Just thought about our team and getting our group to the playoffs ..read more

The American Hockey League announced the 2023-24 AHL First and Second All-Star Teams on Thursday afternoon. Six forwards, four defensemen, and two goaltenders are chosen annually for the awards voted on by AHL coaches, players, and media. The AHL-leading Hershey Bears had just one member of their roster selected for the honors. Hunter Shepard, a 2023 Calder Cup champion and playoff MVP, was picked as the First All-Star Team’s goaltender after an excellent season that saw him go 27-3-3 with a 1.75 goals-against average, .929 save percentage, and five shutouts. Shep. Daddy. https://t.co/SPc7vW ..read more

With their 2-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers, the Washington Capitals clinched the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference and in the process, officially set the new salary cap era record (2005-06) for the team with the lowest goal differential (minus-37) to qualify for the postseason. The Capitals’ minus-37 is the worst goal differential to make the playoffs since the 1990-91 season — 33 years — when the Vancouver Canucks qualified with a minus-72. The Canucks lost in the first round of the playoffs that year to a Los Angeles Kings team that featured Wayne Gretzky. The Canucks were ou ..read more

The Washington Capitals are back in the playoffs after missing out in 2022-23 for the first time in eight years. This season’s squad is ready to embrace a postseason appearance with no expectations as they come into their first-round matchup against the heavily-favorited New York Rangers. During Ovechkin’s 19-year career, he’s made the postseason 15 different times. The Capitals have rarely been been underdogs. The team recently got a taste of it though in the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs against the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Florida Panthers. They will get it again against the 2024 Presidents ..read more

The Washington Capitals have a few days before they’re set to travel up to New York for Game One of their first-round series with the Rangers. The off days will be important as the team has a few key pieces on their backend recovering from injuries. Neither Rasmus Sandin nor Nick Jensen were able to dress for the Capitals’ final two games of the regular season due to their respective upper-body injuries. Head coach Spencer Carbery revealed during his post-practice media availability on Thursday that there is a chance both defenders could dress against the Rangers in Game One. “For sure th ..read more

ARLINGTON, VA — Growing up in Minnesota, Charlie Lindgren didn’t even want to share a rink with his brother Ryan Lindgren, now a defenseman for the New York Rangers. “[Ryan is] the younger brother — so he’s four years younger than me and so I never would want to be on the ice with him,” Charlie explained. “Because I was the goaltender. I was not going to let my younger brother have the opportunity to score on me. Until probably like four years ago, I was like, ‘okay, you can come out and start shooting on me,’ because he’s a pretty good hockey player. So it’s finally okay for us to play hockey ..read more

The Washington Capitals are hosting their first playoff games at Capital One Arena since the spring of 2022. To celebrate the occasion, the team announced a handful of giveaways they’ll be doing in conjunction with their first-round matchup against the New York Rangers. News: The @Capitals announced today several initiatives surrounding the Eastern Conference First Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs against the New York Rangers, which begins on Sunday, April 21, at 3 p.m. on @MonSportsNet. Capitals fans are invited to participate in several… pic.twitter.com/nuOJKxrBiL — CapitalsPR (@CapitalsPR ..read more

The Washington Capitals played for huge stakes on Tuesday and a big local audience tuned in. According to a Monumental Sports Network press release, the Capitals-Flyers game was the “most watched single-game regular season broadcast” since the network rebranded from NBC Sports Washington and the most watched Capitals game on either NBCSWSH or Monumental since February 1, 2022, when the Caps played the Pittsburgh Penguins. The ratings numbers were not provided. #ALLCAPS fans did their part in rooting the @Capitals to the playoffs! Our #CapsFlyers broadcast was a record setter : https://t.co/fy ..read more

In their final week of the regular season, after breaking the AHL’s win record in the 72 game format, the Hershey Bears continue to push and make history. With their 4-3 victory over the Charlotte Checkers, the Bears’ 2023-24 team clinched the best single season points percentage in the franchise’s 86-year history. With 111 points through 71 games and a current points percentage of .782, the Bears are guaranteed to pass their previous franchise high of .769 percentage from the 2009-10 season. The Bears got started scoring early with Joe Snively finding the net just 2:08 into the game. Matth ..read more

Ryan Leonard has decided to return to Boston College for his sophomore season in the NCAA. The Washington Capitals released the news in the form of a statement from general manager Brian MacLellan. Leonard had the opportunity to join up with the Capitals for their playoff run this spring if he had signed an entry-level deal with the organization, foregoing the rest of his college eligibility. “Ryan Leonard indicated his desire to return for his sophomore season at Boston College,” MacLellan said. “We support Ryan’s decision to return to one of the best programs in the nation to continue his de ..read more