Capitals Notebook: Team Holds Last Practice Before Preseason Finale, Lines Taking Form As Vrana, Cristall & More Make Final Push
ARLINGTON, V.A. — The Washington Capitals were locked in at their last practice before their preseason finale against the Boston Bruins, as they took the ice for some hard work on Friday at MedStar Capitals Iceplex.
Washington put emphasis on small area drills and running lines, while also getting in some power play and penalty kill practice.
The line combinations also provided an inside look at how the roster could look to start the regular season, as Sonny Milano, Hendrix Lapierre and Aliaksei Protas made up the third line while Jakub Vrana, Andrew Cristall, Mike Sgarbossa and Ivan Miroshnichenko, who are all competing for extra forward roles, were on a fifth line.
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There is a chance that some fringe players could appear in the mix on Saturday against Boston, but head coach Spencer Carbery is not yet committed to that and said to expect a lot of regulars in the mix while Charlie Lindgren will play the full game vs. the Bruins.
Here are the line combinations at practice that could suit up against Boston:
Alex Ovechkin-Dylan Strome-Andrew Mangiapane
Connor McMichael-Pierre-Luc Dubois-Tom Wilson
Sonny Milano-Hendrix Lapierre-Aliaksei Protas
Brandon Duhaime-Nic Dowd-Taylor Raddysh
Jakub Vrana/Andrew Cristall-Mike Sgarbossa-Ivan Miroshnichenko
Jakob Chychrun-John Carlson
Martin Fehervary-Matt Roy
Rasmus Sandin-Trevor van Riemsdyk
Alex Alexeyev-Dylan McIlrath
Ethan Bear
Charlie Lindgren
Logan Thompson
Hunter Shepard
PP1: Ovechkin, Carlson, Wilson, Dubois, Strome
PP2: Sandin, Chychrun, Lapierre, McMichael, Mangiapane
Cristall and Vrana were both battling hard in their respective reps, as both are pushing to make the most of their ice time in these final days with opening night rosters due Monday at 5 p.m. ET.
Looking at the roster, Cristall could get a nine-game look at the NHL level to start the season following a stellar camp. Meanwhile, Vrana is trying to turn his professional tryout into a full-time contract with D.C.
At the same time, Ivan Miroshnichenko and Mike Sgarbossa are looking to avoid returning to Hershey for now (Sgarbossa will have to clear waivers).
Puck drop for Saturday's preseason game is at 5 p.m. ET at Capital One Arena.
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