Top 3 keys to victory for the Capitals against Hurricanes: Better defense

The Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes meet in a rematch at Capital One Arena.

The Gr8 Chase is over! Alex Ovechkin did it and reached 895 career goals. After the Washington Capitals honor him before the game, the Carolina Hurricanes will be lurking for a big Metropolitan Division matchup. You can catch the game at 7:30 p.m. on Monumental Sports Network, ESPN plus, Disney plus and Hulu. You can listen to the game on 106.7 The Fan and Caps Radio 24/7.

The Hurricanes vs Capitals betting odds on Caesars have the Capitals as 1.5 goal underdogs on home ice. The Hurricanes have -125 moneyline oddds and are favored while the Caps moneyline is at +105. The over/under is set at 5.5 goals.

#3 Control the emotions

This will be an easy key. Ovechkin is sure to get a rocking ovation so the emotions of the 895 hype should be easy to control. What will be difficult is they'll be facing a pesky Hurricanes team. Last Wednesday the teams met and the Hurricanes protected their home ice with a 5-1 win.

It was also a very physical game that featured a combined 142 penalty minutes between the teams. The Canes got eight power plays on the night and connected three times while the Caps went one for four.

Also in that contest the Caps had 35 hits compared to the Hurricanes 15 and 14 blocked shots compared to the Canes 12. Giveaways were even at 17 in a game the Hurricanes just wanted more. Ovechkin scored the lone goal in that defeat.

#2 Treat it like a playoff game

With the Hurricanes 3-0 loss at the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday, the Capitals clinched the 2024-25 Metropolitan Division title. It marked the Caps 14th division title in franchise history and 11th since 2007-08. The Capitals' 11 division titles since 2007-08 are the most in the NHL with the next closest teams having six division titles in the 18 year span. Those other teams are the Boston Bruins and Vancouver Canucks, each with six.

It also marked the Caps sixth Metropolitan Division title since the division was formed in 2013-14. No other Metro team has won more than two division titles in that time. The Capitals enter tonight's game with a 49-19-9 record with 107 points and sit atop the Eastern Conference standings while owning the second best record in the NHL.

The Capitals can secure the franchise's sixth 50 win season with a victory on Thursday. Should Washington beat Carolina, it would tie for the fourth fewest games needed to reach the 50 win mark in franchise history. With five games left it's imperative to treat each like a playoff game.

"That's going to be our biggest challenge coming off such a unique, thrilling experience celebrating that achievement (of 895), and now having to completely reset mentally and focus on the task at hand of playing well as a team and making sure that we're putting ourselves in the best position possible to play well in the playoffs. "

Spencer Carbery following Wed practice

#1 Better defense

Washington had a three day break since the Islanders loss and they needed it. Since clinching a playoff spot, the Capitals have gone 3-4-1 and rank 27th in the league in that stretch. Before the road trip to California in mid March, the Caps allowed just 2.56 goals per game which was the third fewest in the league.

In the stretch of 13 games since, their 3.38 goals allowed per game rank 24th in the NHL and they've allowed three or more goals in eight straight contests. So either play strong defense or if they can't, they have to score four or five goals.