The Washington Capitals' storybook season is on the line, and on Thursday, they'll have to pull off a win against the high-flying Carolina Hurricanes in Game 5 to stave off elimination.
Washington is ready to give all the fight it has, but the team also acknowledged the need for a new game plan.
The current formula is just not working, and the entire lineup appears to be struggling, despite flashes of promise.
"We're just not executing, making the play, whatever you want to call it," coach Spencer Carbery said. "And we're making some mistakes and they're capitalizing."
That said, the Capitals are ready to make changes. But what exactly will those changes be?
So far, the tweaks being made haven't been anything too drastic.
Aliaksei Protas' return led to him being put back on the top line with Dylan Strome and Alex Ovechkin, and then swapped with Tom Wilson amid a lack of a spark on the top-6. On the bottom-6, the only changes that've come have been Ryan Leonard and Taylor Raddysh splitting the series on the third-line right wing with Andrew Mangiapane and Lars Eller.
On defense, Rasmus Sandin and John Carlson were reunited, while Jakob Chychrun was put with Matt Roy. Trevor van Riemsdyk has remained with Alex Alexeyev, but the young defender's minutes have been dwindling. He didn't play the last five minutes of the second, let alone any of the third period, in Game 4, meaning the team was essentially rolling five defensemen.
Logan Thompson has remained the constant in net, though his play has not been consistent over the last two games.
Now, going into an elimination game, there is more freedom to make some bigger moves, and at this point, Carbery needs to put things in a blender. He should, however, proceed with caution.
One possibility is taking out Eller and swapping in Connor McMichael or Protas at center to try and ignite a spark on the third line, then putting Anthony Beauvillier back on the top line, a role he's thrived in this postseason.
However, it's more complex than a plug-and-play; Eller also plays penalty kill and is a proven center, while McMichael and Protas have spent the entire season thriving on the wing. Making either play a different role at this point in time may not be easy, but at this point, it could be the necessary call as the team seeks a spark offensively.
Or, perhaps it's time to give Ethen Frank his postseason debut; he can bring speed and a new look to the mix. But that would mean taking out another established winger.
On the blue line, Dylan McIlrath could come in to establish more physicality and experience, or if the team wants more speed, Ethan Bear could draw into the mix. Again, the moves present risks, with McIlrath needing to keep pace with Carolina and Bear not having played in the NHL all season.
In goal, Thompson's been reliable and has shown what he could do. Carbery could consider switching things up and putting in Charlie Lindgren to ignite a spark, but with the exception of a couple of poor reads, netminding hasn't been the issue.
Washington will hold a full practice on Wednesday to evaluate the lineup, but regardless, if the team is looking to experiment, there's no better time than now.
