Capitals chase 3rd straight win vs. Islanders in Metro playoff squeeze
The Washington Capitals closed January on a needed positive note.
They could improve their postseason chances with a victory over the visiting New York Islanders, who are ahead of them in the Metropolitan Division standings, on Monday night.
Washington is currently outside a playoff spot in the highly competitive Eastern Conference. However, the Capitals have won two straight and are 3-1-1 after a four-game losing streak.
On Saturday, Washington trailed 3-0 at home to Carolina early in the third period, then rallied to score four unanswered goals, capped by Justin Sourdif's tally 1:42 into overtime for a 4-3 victory.
"You never know. You believe you are gonna find a way to break through," Capitals coach Spencer Carbery said.
"That's the Caps' resiliency that I've grown accustomed to over the last couple of years. ... There's a focus to it. They understand what's at stake and where we're at."
Washington has had to navigate injuries to key contributors throughout the season, and recently added forward Connor McMichael (upper body) to the injured reserve. It's also possible that defensemen Matt Roy and Martin Fehervary could sit out again for this contest.
Sourdif, however, has registered eight points in his last five home games. Meanwhile, Capitals defenseman Jacob Chychrun has tallied four goals and seven assists over the last nine games.
Chychrun posted three assists, while Washington won two of the first three meetings with New York this season. Sourdif, though, was kept off the scoresheet in all those matchups.
The Islanders are four points ahead of the Capitals and entered play on Sunday sitting third in the Metropolitan. New York had won three straight games before blowing an early two-goal lead, then a one-goal second-period advantage, before losing 4-3 to Nashville at home on Saturday.
"Those are huge games," said New York forward Mathew Barzal, who had a goal with an assist against the Predators.
"It's tight. The whole division is tight, the playoffs are tight. It'll come right down to the wire and we have to find a way to win games."
Despite Saturday's crushing defeat, the Islanders should be confident as they try for a third consecutive win on the road, where they're 15-10-3 this season. Barzal, the team leader with 46 points, scored one of his 14 goals during a 3-1 victory at Washington on Oct. 31.
New York's Ilya Sorokin made 38 saves on Saturday, and has a 2.42 goals-against average while starting all three games versus Washington in 2025-26. Teammate David Rittich is 3-4-2 with a 2.75 GAA on the road this season.
The Capitals are currently dealing with injuries to goaltenders Logan Thompson (upper body) and Charlie Lindgren (lower body). While Lindgren remains on injured reserve, there's a possibility that Thompson could return for his first game since Tuesday.
Clay Stevenson stopped 19 of 22 shots while making his second career start Saturday for the Capitals.
Washington superstar Alex Ovechkin has not recorded a goal in four consecutive home games. However, he has one goal with two assists in the three games against the Islanders this season.