Here's everything to know as the Capitals continued training camp on Friday.
ARLINGTON, V.A. — The Washington Capitals may have gotten the skate test over and done with on Thursday, but the skating work didn't stop there as that took center stage on Day 2 on Friday at MedStar Capitals Iceplex.
Head coach Spencer Carbery skated his groups hard, having his players do laps and circuits around the rink while moving the nets and making them sprint at different points in time.
Alex Ovechkin, who was held out of the skate test on Thursday as he deals with a minor ailment, was all in, not holding back and joining his teammates in the apparent bag skate. The 39-year-old also wasn't limited in drills as he was on Day 1, as he skated with Dylan Strome and Andrew Mangiapane once again on a first-line unit.
Hendrix Lapierre stood out among his teammates in skating, as he continues to impress with his speed while preparing to graduate full-time to the NHL this season. He was skating with Jakub Vrana and Ethen Frank again, and he sets himself apart with the way he can build power and momentum in his stride.
Vrana also continues to show promise and compete as he looks to earn a roster spot out of training camp. Ivan Miroshnichenko, who is also gunning for a forward spot, battled hard as he moved into Ovechkin's group for Day 2.
Other skating standouts include Brandon Duhaime, who shows great speed, along with the likes of linemate Taylor Raddysh.
Beyond the skating, players competed in 1v1 and 2v2 drills, with defensemen Jakob Chychrun and Ethan Bear standing out there as well.
In addition to the regulars, some prospects also stepped up and stood out on Friday. Eriks Mateiko, who was taken in the fourth round of this year's draft, was impressive in his skating and shot, and he could be a player that we see in game action this preseason.
When it came to lines, the Capitals kept the same combinations that were established on Day 1.
The McMichael-Dubois-Wilson and Duhaime-Dowd-Raddysh lines stayed together up front, as did the Chychrun-Carlson, Alexeyev-Roy and Fehervary-Van Riemsdyk pairings. Rasmus Sandin still has not arrived and is continuing to deal with visa issues.
Washington will play in its first preseason game on Sunday against the Philadelphia Flyers, and the plan is to start off by dressing prospects and other hopefuls first and getting a look there before integrating veterans in as the preseason schedule continues.
