Game 5: 5-2-1-1 (PTS-W-L-OT)
Saturday October 13, 2018 Toronto Maple Leafs @ Washington Capitals
Place: Capital One Arena
Time: 7:00 p.m.
TV: NBCSWA, NHLN-US, CBC
Radio: 106.7 The Fan, Capitals Radio 24/7
NHL.COM for Live Box Score
Last Game: October 11, Capitals Lost 6-0 against Devils
Next Game: October 17, 7:00pm Rangers @ Capitals
8-Ovechkin 92-Kuznetsov 18-Stephenson
13-Vrana 19-Bäckström 77-Oshie
65-Burakovsky 20-Eller 10-Connolly
23-Jaskin 26-Dowd 25-Smith-Pelly
9-Orlov 2-Niskanen
6-Kempny 74-Carlson
44-Orpik 29-Djoos
70-Holtby (starter)
1-Copley
-- SCRATCH --
79-Walker
72-Boyd
22-Bowey
-- INJURED RESERVE --
-- SUSPENDED --
43-Wilson (15 games left??)
-- 1st Powerplay Unit --
77-Oshie 19-Bäckström 92-Kuznetsov
8-Ovechkin 74-Carlson
-- 2nd Powerplay Unit --
23-Jaskin 10-Connolly 20-Eller
2-Niskanen 9-Orlov
Referees: Graham Skilliter (#24), Dan O’Halloran (#13)
Linesmen: Tim Nowak (#77), Scott Driscoll (#68)
Leafs lines at morning skate in DCHyman-Tavares-Marner
Marleau-Matthews-Kapanen
Lindholm-Kadri-Brown
Johnsson-Leivo-Ennis
Rielly-Hainsey
Gardiner-Zaitsev
Dermott-Ozhiganov
Marincin-Holl
Andersen starts
Sparks
1st Period00:18 GOAL 18-Stephenson, assists 92-Kuznetsov & 8-Ovechkin 1-0 WSH
2nd Period03:30 Leafs GOAL Kapanen, assists Hainsey & Matthews 1-1 TIE
04:39 PP GOAL 92-Kuznetsov, assists 19-Bäckström & 8-Ovechkin 2-1 WSH
18:53 Leafs GOAL Lindholm, assists Gardiner & Brown 2-2 TIE
3rd Period06:28 Leafs PP GOAL Leivo, assists Johnsson & Gardiner 3-2 TOR
18:21 Leafs GOAL Matthews, assists Kapanen & Reilly 4-2 TOR
FINAL: 4-2 TORBy Isabelle Khurshudyan October 13 at 2:42 PM
Tom Wilson to have appeal hearing with NHL commissioner on ThursdayTom Wilson received a 20-game suspension for a hit during the preseason. He has missed the Capitals' four regular season games. (Nick Wass/Associated Press)
Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson will have his appeal hearing with NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman on Thursday in New York City, according to the NHL Players' Association. Wilson is serving a 20-game suspension from the league’s Department of Player Safety for an illegal check to the head of St. Louis Blues forward Oskar Sundqvist.
The NHL Players' Association filed for an appeal on Wilson’s behalf last Friday, and Bettman’s ruling won’t necessarily signal the end of the process. If Bettman does not lift the ban, Wilson can then choose to appeal to a neutral arbitrator, and players have had more success with that route. Nashville forward Austin Watson recently had his 27-game ban for domestic abuse reduced to 18 games by Shyam Das, the same arbitrator who would rule on Wilson’s case if it gets that far.
In 2016, Dennis Wideman was suspended 20 games for abuse of an official, and a neutral arbitrator then reduced the ban to 10 games. The process took a month and a half, and Wideman had already served 19 games.
[The Caps think Evgeny Kuznetsov is one of the NHL’s best, but he just wants to have fun]
Wilson’s appeal likely will focus on the length of the suspension rather than the legality of his hit on Sundqvist. The Department of Player Safety described Wilson’s fourth suspension in 105 games, including preseason and playoffs, as “an unprecedented frequency of suspensions in the history of the Department of Player Safety,” which is what led to the harsh sentence. Based on the $5.17 million average annual value of Wilson’s contract, he is forfeiting $1.26 million as part of the suspension. The money goes to the players’ emergency assistance fund. If an appeal is successful, he could get some portion of that back.
While Wilson remains out of the lineup, the Capitals are still figuring out who should replace him on the top line beside center Evgeny Kuznetsov and captain Alex Ovechkin. Wilson scored a career-high 14 goals and 21 assists there last season, and through the first four games, Coach Todd Reirden has tried right wing Brett Connolly there. Against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night, speedy winger Chandler Stephenson will be in that spot.
“Just the depth of their four lines and the way that they play, I think this lines up better for our four lines matchup-wise for us, and also just looking for someone with a little bit different type of skill-set than Brett has,” Reirden said. “So, now Chandler can get in there on the forecheck and disrupt. They’re a team that you have to force to play defense and make sure you have a really good forecheck if you’re going to shut them down.”
Read more on the Capitals:Can suspended forward Tom Wilson change his game? Braden Holtby latest Caps player annoyed by a puck-snatching adultCapitals' Stanley Cup banner features a lucky penny sewn behind the label