New York Islanders vs. Washington Capitals Pick & Prediction NOVEMBER 29th 2024
Preview and Prediction
The Washington Capitals continue to thrive without the presence of Alex Ovechkin and are determined to extend their two-game winning streak when they face the New York Islanders on Friday.
Ovechkin will be sidelined for an additional 3-5 weeks after sustaining a fractured fibula on November 18th.
Following two losses in the absence of Ovechkin, Washington bounced back with two victories in the Sunshine State - a 4-1 win against the Florida Panthers on Monday and a thrilling 5-4 comeback against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday.
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Despite trailing multiple times against the Lightning, the Capitals continuously fought back and ultimately took the lead with Tom Wilson's power-play goal in the third period at 16:34.
Wilson expressed his pride in the team's resilience and praised their efforts in the absence of Ovechkin, saying, "When challenges arise and there are ups and downs, you learn a lot about your team and your teammates. I couldn't be prouder of the group and our goalie (Charlie Lindgren) and everyone stepping up. It was a gutsy, gutsy effort tonight."
The Islanders also made a comeback attempt in their recent 6-3 loss to the Boston Bruins, but were ultimately hindered by a late breakdown. Despite equalizing twice after falling behind in the first two periods, Boston managed to score three unanswered goals in the final 10 minutes of play.
New York has struggled in the third period this season, allowing the most goals (36) in the league during that time.
Despite only two wins in their last nine games (2-4-3), head coach Patrick Roy believes that the team's results do not accurately reflect their level of play.
"We're not giving up 40 shots, we're only giving up 21 (against Boston)," Roy stated. "We're not allowing 22 scoring chances, it's more like 10 or 12. We do a lot of positive things...but I realize that we're making crucial mistakes that result in goals."
The Islanders' special teams have been struggling, ranking last in the NHL in both power play percentage (12.5%) and penalty kill percentage (70.2%). This is especially frustrating considering they have taken the fewest penalties (56) and served the fewest penalty minutes (121) of any team in the league.
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In contrast, the Capitals have the fourth-best penalty kill percentage in the NHL at 84.7%.
Washington's recent record of 6-2-1 in their last nine games has been aided by a rejuvenated power play. They have scored 8 goals on 20 power play opportunities in this stretch, a significant improvement from their 4 goals on 46 attempts in their first 13 games.
As per their usual goalie rotation, Logan Thompson is expected to start on Friday after Lindgren faced the Lightning. Thompson has a record of 9-1-1 with an impressive 2.44 goals-against average and .917 save percentage in 11 starts this season.
The Islanders are also playing on Saturday at home against the Buffalo Sabres, so goalies Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov are expected to split the back-to-back starts in some order. Varlamov may face the Capitals after Sorokin allowed five goals on 20 shots against the Bruins on Wednesday.
After only recording 10 points (7 goals, 3 assists) in the Islanders' first 20 games, Brock Nelson has stepped up with 3 goals and 4 assists in their last three games.
Dylan Strome leads the Capitals with 31 points (7 goals, 24 assists).
New York Islanders vs. Washington Capitals Recap NOV 29TH 2024
Jakob Chychrun scored in overtime to give the Washington Capitals a 5-4 comeback win over the visiting New York Islanders on Friday.
Down 4-2 through two periods, the Capitals equalized on third-period goals from Dylan Strome at 1:20 and Tom Wilson at the 7:24 mark.
Chychrun assisted on Strome's goal, then was the overtime hero as he converted a big wrist shot from the slot at 1:20.
Wilson scored twice, Connor McMichael had three assists and Strome collected a goal and two assists for Washington. Nic Dowd scored the Capitals' other goal.
Logan Thompson stopped 20 of 24 shots for the Capitals, who have won three in a row and six of their last eight.
It was another late-game breakdown for the Islanders, who are 2-4-4 in their last 10 games. New York has allowed a league-high 38 goals in the third period this season.
Anders Lee had a goal and two assists for New York, Simon Holmstrom scored twice and Bo Horvat had two assists. Kyle MacLean also scored and Semyon Varlamov stopped 21 of 26 shots.
Holmstrom's well-placed wrist shot from the circle gave New York the early lead 3:36 into the game. Washington equalized just 74 seconds later, as Ivan Miroshnichenko's pass found Dowd sneaking around the net for a wrap-around goal.
More crisp passing from McMichael and Strome set up Wilson's power-play goal 12:10 into the first period.
Just 1:15 after the first intermission, the Islanders leveled the score with another early-period strike. Noah Dobson's shot was well wide of the net, yet Lee reached out and expertly redirected the wayward shot past Thompson.
John Carlson seemingly restored the Capitals' lead at 14:05 of the second period, but the goal was erased after a video review due to goaltender interference.
The overturned goal swung the momentum, as New York scored two more goals in the period's final four minutes. MacLean put the Islanders ahead at the 16:28 mark, and Holmstrom tipped in his second goal of the game at 18:09 of the second frame.