Edmonton (1-1-0) vs. Washington Capitals (1-0-0)
7PM/ET
Note: Expect my game previews to come a little later in the day--for some reason the Caps won't give me a press pass just yet. I'll have to rely on other sources for now.
Tonight should be one of the better games opening week. Much should be made of how the division rival Tampa Bay Lightning swept the Caps out of last year's playoffs. Also, it is Tomas Vokoun's first start for his new team.
Tampa Bay is coming off a minor shellacking against the Boston Bruins. Their strength obviously lies in their first line of forwards. St. Louis and Stamkos are two of the top forwards in the league. It will be interesting to see which line is paired against the studs. Reports have come out that Dwayne Roloson, the 42 year old Lighting netminder, uses a cane on non-game days and is on the brink of falling apart. He has been solid the last year, but look for the Capitals to bounce on him early and often.
The Capitals are coming off a shaky start in their season opener. Having one game under their belt should show huge improvements to the Caps. I look for better offensive flow from the Ovie-Backstrom line. Expect Ovie to score a goal or two tonight. Their special teams will more than likely continue to struggle.
The big question is how will Vokoun look. I thought in the practices and preseason games I saw, he looked better than Neuvirth. I expect Vokoun to play very well and give in a one or two powerplay goals. Hopefully we will see some of this.
There has been some word of this being a statement game. Is it? No. No such thing as a statement in October. Statement games happen in the playoffs. Period.
Prediction: Capital 5 Lightning 2
Star 1: Ovechkin
Star 2: Vokoun
Star 3: St. Louis
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