Washington has its own problems on the back end and keeps winning anyway. The Capitals are 8-4-0 and have won 3 straight. The latest was a 4-3 regulation win in Nashville on the second night of a back-to-back. Cole Hutson scored both of his goals that night with Rasmus Sandin and Vincent Desharnais both out. One came from a sharp angle and beat Juuse Saros short side. On the other, he walked into the middle of the ice and ripped one in off the bar.
Washington's recent run has come mostly at home, where it beat New Jersey, Buffalo and Philadelphia. The one bad night in that stretch was a 2-5 loss to the Kings. The Capitals have scored 4 or more goals in 4 of their last 5. That puts pressure on a Minnesota defense playing without Spurgeon and Faber. Minnesota's scoring has held up well considering who's missing. The Wild scored 5 in Seattle and 3 or more in 4 of their last 5. The one exception was a 2-1 loss in Calgary.
Both teams are depending on a puck-moving defenseman to cover for missing bodies. For Minnesota that's Hughes, playing big minutes with the captain out. For Washington it's Hutson, filling in for Sandin and Desharnais. Both teams also played on Thursday, so rest is even. The difference is travel: Minnesota flies from St. Paul for an early start, and Washington comes home from Nashville. Puck drops at 3:30 PM ET at Capital One Arena. Watch whether Kaprizov's scoring pace keeps going against Washington's blue line, and whether Minnesota's patched-up defense can slow a Capitals team that keeps getting goals from its defensemen.