The lineup news to watch is on Carolina's side. Jordan Staal has a lower-body injury and was ruled out of the Philadelphia game. He had played 14:12 in Chicago, and Sunday is the first game he has missed this season. Nobody has given a return date. Staal is the center Carolina sends out against the other team's best players. If he is still out Tuesday, the matchup against Ovechkin's line looks different, and the Hurricanes are already playing without Seth Jarvis and Alexander Nikishin.
Opening night is the only real head-to-head evidence so far, and it went Washington's way: 5-2, in Raleigh. That came before Carolina got rolling. Since then the Hurricanes have put up 6 against Montreal and 7 against Vancouver. The Capitals have been tougher to read. They have strung wins together, then gave up 5 on home ice to Seattle, so even a short trip to Raleigh is a real test for a team trying to find a steady level.
Washington's injury problems are on the back end. Matt Roy has been out with a lower-body injury, Rasmus Sandin opened the season on the injured non-roster list after knee trouble, and Pierre-Luc Dubois is also out up front. Against Carolina's depth, which had 4 different goal scorers in Chicago, a thin blue line has to cover a lot of ice. Puck drop at Lenovo Center is 6:45 PM ET Tuesday, and the first thing to check that day is whether Staal skates.