Washington's question is in net. Logan Thompson picked up a lower-body injury in the 5-2 loss to the Kings and is now on injured reserve. Charlie Lindgren started against Buffalo, and the club recalled Mitch Gibson from Hershey to back him up. Whether Thompson is close to returning by Wednesday is the biggest open question for the home side.
The Capitals at 6-4-0 have been a different kind of streaky, alternating wins and losses with some leaky nights mixed in. The Buffalo game summed them up. They started badly, clawed back to lead 3-2 after 2 periods, and won it 4-3 in overtime when Alex Tuch beat his old team for his 2nd goal of the night. Tuch's finish is a real asset. A team that keeps needing comebacks is not.
For Philadelphia, the Ducks loss is the one to think about. The Flyers led 2-0 and then 3-2 in the 2nd period and still lost 5-4 at home, which ended a 3-game winning streak. Tocchet said his group thought it would be "a bit of an easy" game and "let them off the hook." On Wednesday, in a building where the other team has had 3 days of rest, a lead like that has to be protected on tired legs. The thing to watch is whether the Flyers' structure holds up past the 2nd period, and who is in Washington's crease.