The Washington Capitals are right back in the thick of things due to a 6-game winning streak. That streak has allowed them to leapfrog the Carolina Hurricanes and claim first place in the Metropolitan Division. Washington is plying some of its best hockey over its last 10 games, coming in at a critical time before the start of the new year. Their all-time high longest win streak was 14 games, occurring between January 13 and February 7, 2010.
The Capitals play team game over the past 10
Washington has outscored their opponents 98-69 and 27-9 over their past six-game winning streak, giving them a 9-1-1 in their last 11. Over the season, their defense has played a huge role in their success allowing only 25.7 shots against per game and a stingy 2.46 goals against per game.
Individual stars during winning streak
A few players who have come up big over the past six games include youngster Ryan Leonard who has to goals and six assists for eight points, Connor McMichael, who has two goals and three assists for five points, and Alex Ovechkin who is on fire with four goals and five assists for nine points. Goaltender Logan Thompson has been a brick wall recently, compiling a 4-0 record while giving up only five goals. Charlie Lindgren has been as good as Thompson, going 4-0-1 and giving up 10 goals in his last five appearances.
Washington has a difficult five-game stretch coming up in the schedule. The next five games are against the Anaheim Ducks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Carolina Hurricanes, Winnipeg Jets, and Minnesota Wild. Those teams have a combined 72-45-14 record and should pose quite a challenge.
The Capitals may be in the market to make a move as forwards NIc Dow and Pierre-Luc Dubois will be out of action. Dowd was placed on injured reserve and Dubois will be out of action for 3-4 months due to having surgery on his abdominal and adductor muscles. Washington has a projected cap space of $2.75 million to use on a free agent and the other spot could be used on a call-up. Regardless of how they choose to fill those spots they look to remain hot as the schedule heats up