Tonight at 8:00 p.m., the Washington Capitals (3-5-0, 6 points) will head up north to Winnipeg to face the Jets (4-5-0, 8 points) on the ice at MTS Centre, where the home team has failed to capitalize on the support from the home crowd. The game can be live streamed here; Capitals fans can listen to the action on WJFK 106.7, while Winnipeg fans can hear the game on TSN 1290.
Despite playing more home games to kick off their slate than any team in the NHL, the Jets are just 3-4 on their home ice. Head coach Claude Noel is trying to shake things up to jumpstart his stagnant squad, so he's thrown Devin Setoguchi in the pot.
Noel said the key to getting consistent offense is achieving quality shot attempts, instead of the misleading quantity Winnipeg is currently piling up. "I think the shots would be an illusion. We needed to get secondary shots," Noel said. "I don't think we created a whole lot."
Another area of concern is Winnipeg's propensity to give up opening goals, which they've done for three straight games. "We can't think we're going to make a comeback every single game," goaltender Ondrej Pavelec said. "We have to find a way to start winning games. The way we've been playing all season long is not the way to be successful. We have to change something and we have to change something now."
The Capitals have been underwhelming on offense as well, despite boasting one of the NHL's premier offensive talents, Alex Ovechkin. Despite the Caps averaging just 2.5 goals per game, Ovechkin leads the team with 10 points, seven of which were goals.
Where Washington can try to demoralize Winnipeg is on the penalty kill. The Jets have scored just five power play goals this year converting at a 14.3 percent clip.
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