Caps @ Canes 1-26-2007

Washington Capitals (20-28; 47 points; 4th Southeast Division, 13th Eastern Conference, 23rd Overall) @ Carolina Hurricanes (25-25; 56 points; 2nd Southeast Division, 6th Eastern Conference, 13th Overall):
Caps Game #49, Road Game #24, NHL Game #728

RBC Center, Raleigh, NC. 7:05 pm. Washington TV: NewsChannel 8. Radio: WTNT 570-AM. Carolina TV: Fox Sportsnet South. Carolina Radio: WWMY 102.9-FM. NHL Center Ice: Fox Sportsnet South feed.

Tonight the Caps return from the All-Star break with a home-and-home set with the Carolina Hurricanes. The Caps are looking to reverse the slide that had them losing four of their last five games before the break. The lone win came against came in Carolina last Thursday. The Canes have lost their last two, the most recent being a gimmick loss to the Ning last Saturday night, giving up 5 goals in regulation in the process. These two losses have hampered the Canes attempt to chase down the Thrashers.

What The Natives Are Saying:

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

Open Source Intelligence:

Durham Herald-Sun. Raleigh News & Observer: Healthy D, Eye on the Canes. Canes.com.

Neutral Views:

NHL.com AP Wire.

What Do I Expect Tonight?:

The last time these two teams met, the Canes were not happy with their performance as the Caps won 5-2. Canes head coach Peter Laviolette called the Carolina performance "brutal." The Caps had a similar 5-2 win over the Canes back in October and the next time the Caps played Carolina, the Canes pitched a 5-0 shutout. If the Caps want to make the playoffs, the two games this weekend against Carolina are about as close to "must wins" as games can get in January. Should the Caps get off to a poor start tonight or this weekend. Forget about all the talk about making the playoffs.

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

Caps 3
Canes 2
Winner by Zubrus

Editorial Note For The Readers Of This Blog:

Because of a meeting I have to attend later (and I do mean later, as in 8:30 pm later) tonight, I will only be able to watch the first and part of the second period tonight. Therefore there will be no post mortem after the game tonight.