Jan. 16 vs. Ottawa Senators at Canadian Tire Centre
Time: 7:00 p.m.
TV: MNMT
Radio: 106.7 THE FAN, Caps Radio 24/7
Washington Capitals (29-10-5)
Ottawa Senators (22-18-3)
The Caps make the first of two visits to Ottawa this month on Thursday night when they take on the Senators for the first of three meetings this season. Ottawa is the last Eastern Conference team the Caps are facing for the first time in 2024-25.
Washington hits the road on the heels of a 3-0 shutout win over Anaheim on Tuesday in DC. Logan Thompson stopped all 19 shots he faced in that game to earn his first shutout as a Capital and the team’s first shutout since Charlie Lindgren blanked Boston in DC on April 15 of last year, in the team’s penultimate game of the 2023-24 regular season.
Since being recalled from AHL Hershey this past Friday, right wing Ethen Frank has picked up points in each of his first three NHL games (two goals, one assist), and he has given the Caps’ lineup a nice mid-season injection of speed and energy.
In his debut against Montreal on Friday, Frank used his blazing speed to negate a certain icing call on the Caps and quickly making a play to Lars Eller for the tying goal in front, a goal that is ultimately responsible for Washington collecting a point from that contest. A night later in Nashville, Frank’s wheels and shot were on display when he scored his first NHL goal – and the eventual game-winner – to snap a 1-1 tie midway through the third period.
“You could make a strong argument that [Frank’s line] earns us points against Montreal, and then the following night in Nashville,” says Caps coach Spencer Carbery. “The only reason thatn we get three out of four points there is because of that line, and the plays that they make in that game.”
And on Tuesday against the Ducks, Frank scored a big insurance goal in the final minute of what had been a somewhat wobbly second period for the Caps. Playing on a line with Taylor Raddysh and Lars Eller, the 26-year-old native of Papillon, Neb. has made his mark in less than a week in the League.
“Big time,” says Carbery. “And you’ve just seen it on display, so I’m just really excited and almost having to curb myself a little bit [because] it’s only three games. But you start to think about what he can do over a longer stretch with his speed.
“I’ve just been really, really impressed with Ethen Frank, I’ll be honest. He’s just been so impressive in every single way. From reads – and I talked to him today – using his speed, making small, little plays. He is really, really smart with his puck decisions, and strong on the walls.
“He has a play by our bench – and I loved it; I showed it to the group this morning – where he is getting hammered, he is trying to get a puck and he dives for a loose puck and he pokes it to Brandon Duhaime. It’s just a small, little play, but it’s the extra effort, and doing everything he can to make sure the puck advances.
“I can’t say enough good things about what he is doing, and now the challenge becomes doing it consistently, and being an everyday NHLer, you’ve got to try to do it for a week, two weeks, a month, month and a half. Hopefully, I’m optimistic that he is going to be able to do that, and he’ll continue to be in the lineup if he does.”
After playing a little over 10 minutes in each of his first two games, Frank logged 12:20 worth of ice time on Tuesday against Anaheim. His linemates also saw a bump in their minutes in the Anaheim game, which is understandable because the three of them were possession beasts against the Ducks.
“I think Lars has started to play a little bit better,” says Carbery. “I’ve liked his game the last few, so that’s been nice. And Raddy was really good [Tuesday] night. [Andrew Mangiapane]we’ve found that spot on the fourth line for him, and I think that can help his game. He’s had some strong outings, scored in Nashville, and they were one of our better lines there.
“So yeah, I do think Frank being there and Lars playing a little better and Raddy there, I think that combination has been solid, and they’ve earned more opportunity. They’re playing more 5-on-5 minutes, I’m able to deploy them defensively or offensively without any hesitation, and it will probably look like that [Thursday] night [in Ottawa]. You’re not worried about them against [Brady] Tkachuk or [Tim] Stützle or whoever. They can handle those minutes with Rad and Lars playing the way they are, and Frankie as well, playing at the level he’s playing at.”
Tuesday’s win over the Ducks extended Washington’s home point streak to 11 straight games (8-0-3) and pushed its overall points streak to eight (5-0-3). The Caps are second in the NHL in goals per game (3.61), they’re fifth in goals against per game (2.52), third in penalty killing (83.6 percent) and 11th in power play efficiency.
The Caps are catching the Sens in the potential early stages of a heater. Ottawa has won three straight games, winning three games in four nights while traveling for each. The Sens have sandwiched road shutouts over Pittsburgh (5-0 on Saturday) and the Islanders (2-0 on Tuesday) around Sunday’s 3-2 win over Dallas in Ottawa.
Ottawa’s nascent hot spell followed a 1-5-1 stretch, which was preceded by a six game-winning streak that included a pair of shutouts, but also featured a trio of overtime wins. The Sens have been streaky this season, but they’re in the hunt for an Eastern Conference playoff berth. Going into Wednesday night’s typically light slate of NHL activity, Ottawa stood ninth in the Eastern Conference standings, just a single point behind Columbus for the eighth and final Stanley Cup playoff berth from the Conference.
Thursday marks Washington’s first trip to Ottawa in over a year, since suffering a 6-1 setback at the hands of the Sens here on Oct. 18, 2023, in the third game of the 2023-24 regular season and the first road game of Carbery’s tenure as the team’s head coach.
