Capitals finally return from Olympic break with eyes on playoff push

The Capitals can’t afford an Olympic hangover. Washington’s squad, which returns to action at home against the Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday, emerges from a three-week break embroiled in a hotly contested playoff race.

With 23 games remaining, the Capitals find themselves four points removed from the final playoff spots in the Eastern Conference. Washington has played more games than every other team in the league and holds a lower point percentage than most of the other squads on the postseason bubble.

There’s little room for error.

“Treat every game like the most important game of the year,” forward Dylan Strome said of the Capitals’ mentality. “Right now, it kind of is.”

Despite the break, Washington is hosting Philadelphia with a handful of question marks on the lineup card. Goaltender Logan Thompson and forward Tom Wilson missed Tuesday’s practice as they recover from Sunday’s gold-medal match, where their Canadian squad fell 2-1 to Team USA.

The pair landed on Monday and enjoyed a mandatory day off on Tuesday. Their status for Wednesday night’s game is in doubt, according to coach Spencer Carbery. Defenseman John Carlson, who is recovering from a lower-body injury, will also be a game-day decision.

“That’ll be a TBD,” the coach said after Tuesday’s practice.

It’s not a unique spot for the Capitals. More than 140 NHL players took to the Olympic ice in Milan, Italy, including about 50 who were with Team USA and Team Canada during Sunday’s gold-medal match.

The American gold medalists even planned to attend Tuesday night’s State of the Union address as President Trump’s guests, further delaying their return to their respective teams.

“Everybody’s going to be in the same boat,” Carbery said of potential rust from the break. “It’s a level playing field. Your opponent hasn’t played for the same amount of time.”

The Capitals — minus Thompson, Wilson and Slovakian Olympian Martin Fehervary — have been ramping up practices for a week.

They’ll have little time to adapt once the games begin. Washington has three games in their first four days back from break. After Wednesday’s game, the Capitals host the Vegas Golden Knights on Friday before going up to Montreal for Saturday night’s matchup with the Canadiens.

“It’s not an easy scenario to walk into,” Carbery confessed. “You’re going to hear me say this a lot over the next month and a half: We’re worried about Philly. We just have to play up to our standard tomorrow night; that’s it.”

As the Capitals aim for a playoff push, they avoid the Russian elephant in the room. Alex Ovechkin is now 40 years old. His contract expires at the end of the season.

The NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer has repeatedly said he isn’t sure if this year will be his last. The media circus has prepared accordingly.

Former Capitals teammate T.J. Oshie visited Washington’s locker room on Tuesday to interview Ovechkin for ESPN. A five-man camera crew — complete with their own lighting setup — recorded the three-time MVP as he unlaced his skates on Tuesday.

The next 23 games — if Washington fails to make the postseason — could represent Ovechkin’s last in a Capitals sweater.

“Everyone here loves the guy more than anything, so we’ll see what happens,” Strome said. “But it’s always a pleasure to play with him and on his line and get to be around him every day.”

Carbery, unsurprisingly, isn’t focused on the decisions that Ovechkin and the Capitals will have to make this summer. The NHL’s reigning coach of the year is trying to extend the current season for as long as possible, starting Wednesday.

“I’m focused on: How can I help? How can we problem-solve and put him and our team in the best position possible to have success tomorrow night?” Carbery said. “That’s what he’s solely focused on. The stuff of what happens next year, we’ll leave that for when the time comes.”