Caps vs. Thrashers 2-26-2009 Preview

Washington Capitals (38-23; 81 points; 1st Southeast Division, 2nd Eastern Conference, 6th Overall) vs. Atlanta Thrashers (22-39; 50 points; 4th Southeast Division, 14th Eastern Conference, 29th Overall):
Caps Game #62, Home Game #32, NHL Game #912

Verizon Center, Washington, DC. 7:08 pm. Washington TV: Comcast Sportsnet Mid-Atlantic. Radio: WFED 1500-AM. Atlanta TV: SportSouth. Radio: WCNN 680-AM. NHL Center Ice: Comcast Sportsnet Mid-Atlantic feed.

Tonight Caps, who have alternated wins and losses over their last four games, will host the Atlanta Thrashers in the final game of a five game homestand. The Thrashers are coming off of a 4-3 win at home over the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday night. The win was Atlanta's third in their last five games.

What The Natives Are Saying:

(Com)Post: the value of Viktor Kozlov, hot item. Times.

Neutral Views:

NHL.com AP Wire.

Open Source Intelligence:

Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

What Do We Expect Tonight?:

Once again tonight, the Caps are faced with a team well below them in the standings and as Corey Masisak pointed out in the Times, that is going to happen a lot the rest of the way. The Caps have played only 11 games in their division which is the fewest division games of anybody in the NHL. A third of our 21 remaining games (which includes tonight's) are against the Thrashers and Ning who are currently 29th and 28th overall respectively. The Thrashers are a long ways away from the team that beat us 7-4 on opening night. However, like any other team, the Caps have to guard against a total let down. This is another game that shouldn't be close.

Caps Nut Official Prediction:

Caps 6
Atlanta 2
Winner by A.O.

(4-2 on the season)