Head Coach Barry Trotz apparently isn't happy with what he saw on a troublesome roadtrip that saw the Capitals lose two of three games to Edmonton and Vancouver, while scraping out a win against the Calgary Flames.
Today at practice, Trotz decided to try something a little different - blowing up the lines and starting over. Normally, and that just means for the last couple weeks, Trotz would tinker with new combinations, but had left the top-two pairings (Ovechkin/Backstrom and Johansson/Burakovsky) - until now.
This is what it looked liked today at Kettler: Ovechkin – Burakovsky – Ward Johansson – Backstrom – Brouwer Chimera – Kuznetsov – Fehr O’Brien – Beagle/Latta – Wilson
“We need some balance in our scoring,… Trotz said. “We’re getting it from our bottom six. We need a little more consistency from our top six, game in and game out.… (CSNWashington)
Tom Wilson is expected to be in the lineup on Wednesday against the Detroit Red Wings. Wilson was called up from Hershey after a quick weekend with the Bears. Wilson was practicing with the 4th line, but don't be surprised if you see him play some time with Ovechkin and Backstrom.
“When I first talked to him (during the summer) my intention was to put him with Backy and Ovi," Trotz said. (CSNWashington)
While a top-line gig may be a ways out, Wilson's presence is a reassuring one. He adds another element of toughness, but has the ability to score a few goals if given an oppurtunity. Towards the end of last season, when Kuznetsov came over from the KHL, he and Wilson were paired for a few games, and they looked good.
Could we see them together again?
“The great thing about mixing the lines up is you can always put them back together,… Trotz said. “It’s not like they’re written in stone.…
Ovechkin and Backstrom have been apart a few times in their career, so this is nothing shocking or new. What is interesting is that the Ward-Chimera-Fehr line has been broken up again. These three have been the most consistent and hard to play against dating back to last season, so Trotz could be looking to try and share some of their puck luck with the other players.
Andre Burakovsky is the other surprise here. He's worked his way up the ranks since training camp, and he's having a phenominal season so far, but having him on the top line may be a bit premature. While Ovechkin has been playing very good two-way hockey as of late, he's also had the support of Nicklas Backstrom at center.
“Ovi’s a lot more mature and I think he’s going to handle it the right way," said Trotz. "He’s playing the right way, he’s blocking shots, he’s in the right position defensively. On the forecheck he’s using the body and separating people. One of the things we talked about today is when things are not coming easy you really have to have detail and support the other two players.… (CSNWashington)
If Burakovsky stays with Ovechkin for Wednesday's game, it should prove interesting to see for just how long.
More to come...