Caps prospect Cole Hutson could debut, boost offense against Senators

The Washington Capitals welcome the Ottawa Senators to the American capital on Wednesday night. The game may also mark the debut of Washington's newest player.

Cole Hutson, who signed his entry-level contract over the weekend, took part in his first team practice on Tuesday. A second-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, Hutson joins the Capitals (33-27-8, 74 points) after completing his sophomore year at Boston University.

Washington coach Spencer Carbery told reporters after Tuesday's practice that he will hold a game-day discussion with his coaches on whether Hutson, the younger brother of Montreal Canadiens blueliner Lane Huston, will play.

Regardless of how that decision plays out, Carbery came away impressed.

"You could feel it definitely gave us a little bit of added juice today," he said.

The Capitals have lost two of their last three, including a 3-2 shootout loss Saturday at home to the Boston Bruins.

Much like his older brother, Cole Hutson will provide a spark on offense, and he will have several players capable of finishing what he sets up. Washington features a balanced offense with four skaters already surpassing 20 goals. Forwards Alex Ovechkin and Tom Wilson lead the team with 24 each, with defenseman Jakob Chychrun at 23 and center Aliaksei Protas at 21.

However, goals have been hard to come by for these four recently. The quartet has combined for just seven points (three goals, four assists) in the Capitals' last five games.

Chychrun, who leads all NHL defensemen in goals, is tied with Ovechkin for the team lead with 51 points. Ovechkin, the league's all-time goal scorer, is not having the same kind of stretch run that he had when he surpassed Wayne Gretzky's 894 regular-season goals nearly a year ago.

Since Jan. 29, Ovechkin has just two goals. Both came in the same game, a 6-2 loss Feb. 28 at Montreal.

The Senators (34-23-9, 77 points) are just three points ahead of the Capitals, though Ottawa has played two fewer games. Coach Travis Green's team sits just four points behind Boston (37-23-7, 81), with a game in hand on the Bruins, for the Eastern Conference's final wild-card spot.

Green's team arrives down a couple of key defensemen. The coach told reporters Tuesday that Nick Jensen will undergo knee surgery and is expected to miss "a lengthy period of time," which could mean up to six weeks.

Jake Sanderson, who ranks second on the team with 37 assists and fourth with 48 points, has an upper-body issue keeping him off the ice. However, Green said Sanderson could get back to skating in less than a week.

Forward Brady Tkachuk carried over the success he enjoyed in the Milan Winter Olympics into his play with the Senators. Tkachuk, who scored three goals and five points for the gold medal-winning Americans, has nine points (four goals, five assists) in nine games since NHL play resumed.

The Senators are 6-1-2 since the Olympic break ended, including wins in their last two. Tkachuk, who missed 20 games with a thumb injury in the fall, had a goal and an assist in Sunday's 7-4 home win over San Jose. Even with the missed time, Tkachuk ranks fourth with 18 goals and fifth with 46 points.

Drake Batherson, who ranks second on the team with 27 goals and 59 points, scored twice in Sunday's win. The forward has four goals in his last three games.