Caps @ Canes 1-18-2007 Preview

Washington Capitals (19-27; 45 points; 4th Southeast Division, 13th Eastern Conference, 23rd overall) @ Carolina Hurricanes (25-23; 55 points; 2nd Southeast Division, 6th Eastern Conference, 11th overall):
Caps Game #47, Road Game #23, NHL Game #702

RBC Center, Raleigh, NC. 7:05 pm. Washington TV: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic. Radio: WTEM 980-AM. Carolina TV: Fox Sportsnet South. Radio: WWMY 102.9-FM. NHL Center Ice: Fox Sportsnet South feed.

Tonight the Caps first road trip of 2007 comes to a merciful end. The Caps have lost their last three games and their last six in a row on the road. The Caps are starting a stretch where they will play 4 straight games and 5 games out of six against a Southeast Division foe. Four of those games are against the Carolina Hurricanes who are currently ahead of the Caps. The Canes have won four of their last five though their only loss was in a gimmick to Atlanta last Saturday night. Most recently, the Canes won in Florida on Tuesday night 3-2 in overtime.

What The Natives Are Saying:

(Com)Post. Caps.com. Caps.com .pdf game notes.

It was announced during the Comcast SportsNet broadcast on Tuesday night that the Caps beat writer for The Washington Times, Dave Fay, is having some medical issues which is why he has not been writing for the Caps for the past two weeks. It was announced that Dave Fay would be going under the knife today and I would like to extend my prayers for a safe operation and a speedy recovery. I look forward to seeing the old curmudgeon return to Times and reading his articles once again. Get Well Soon Dave!

Open Source Intelligence:

Durham Herald Sun. (The Division winners get a first round bye? Did I miss a memo or something???) Raleigh News & Observer: Canes coming together, Eye on the Canes. Canes.com.

What Do I Expect Tonight?:

The last couple of times the Caps have faced the Flyers, I've said that the Caps had to be careful of falling into a trap. The Caps had to be careful to not take an opponent lightly and end up losing to them as a result. Well tonight it is the Caps turn to spring a trap. The Caps have not been playing well recently, they just lost another one of their regular defensemen, they've lost three games in a row, and their last six on the road. The Canes have been playing well recently, they're playing at home, they have a 12-4 record against the Southeast Division this season, and they are pulling into position for a fight for the Southeast Division lead. This is another game that the Caps cannot be favored to win. However, this is the same situation that faced the Caps on Tuesday when they played Ottawa. Carolina is a hockey team going to the playoffs where the Caps aren't. It is entirely possible for the Caps to play a good hockey game tonight and still not win.

Caps Nut Official Washington Hockey.com Predict The Score Contest Entry:

Caps 3
Canes 4
Winner by Staal

Editorial Note For The Readers Of This Blog:

Normally my class is on Monday night, but because of the Federal Holiday this past Monday, my class for this week was moved to Thursday night. Therefore, there will be no Post-Mortem after the game tonight.