The last time the Washington Capitals took on the New York Rangers, the Capitals were at the height of their incredible December losing streak. With HBO in the house documenting all the carnage, the Caps were blown out of Madison Square Garden, 7-0.
Capitals Vs. Rangers: Alex Ovechkin Hopes To Keep Scoring, Rangers Look For Consistency
This time, when the Rangers travel south to the Verizon Center to take on the Caps, they’ll be facing a team on a much different streak. Washington hasn’t lost in its last five games, going 4-0-1 since January 12. They’re still on the outside looking in when it comes to the top spot in the Southeast Division, but with a game in hand, they could pull within a single point of first-place Tampa Bay tonight.
Alex Ovechkin, who's had an extremely difficult season thus far, potted a hat trick on Saturday against Toronto, although that's quite a bit lower than the bar set by his new Verizon commercial. The Caps need their star to continue his scoring ways, and the three goals on the weekend could be a nice step towards a break out.
Meanwhile, the Rangers are facing plenty of adversity these days. They've suffered major injuries lately, most recently and most notably a leg injury to leading scorer Brandon Dubinsky, and they've fallen from the middle of the Eastern Conference standings to the playoff bubble.
Sure, they crushed the lowly Leafs just like the Capitals, but their only other recent win was a squeaker against Atlanta. Losses to Philadelphia, Montreal and Carolina in the last nine days have the Blueshirts looking for any form of consistency.
Tonight, the Rangers will look to get a boost with a big road win against the high-flying Capitals, who seem to never lose at home. It’ll be a challenge, to say the least. You can catch the game at 7:30 p.m. Eastern on Versus in the United States, while TSN and RDS will have the action in Canada.
We’ll be providing live game updates right here, and you can also check in with our Capitals blog, Japers’ Rink, and our Rangers blog, Blueshirt Banter, for all the pre-game coverage you can handle.
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