Capitals open 2026-27 in Carolina, then head to Tampa
Washington starts the season with back-to-back road games for the first time ever in an 80-plus game schedule, beginning Friday against the defending champion Hurricanes.
The Washington Capitals begin their 2026-27 season Friday night in Raleigh against the Carolina Hurricanes, and they do it with a back-to-back on the road for the first time ever in a season of 80 or more games.
Saturday brings a trip south to Tampa, where the Capitals will be the opposition for the Lightning's home opener. It is the first season-opening road trip of multiple games for Washington since 2019.
"I think it's a good challenge for our group," coach Spencer Carbery said. "It's two teams that we know very, very well, it's two teams that have been extremely successful over the last 5-10 years."
Washington’s lineup has changed since last year: three of their four forward lines and two of their three defence pairings include at least one player who was not at training camp a year ago.
The one holdover line, Alex Ovechkin with Dylan Strome and Ryan Leonard, never skated together in a preseason game because Ovechkin hurt his lower body early in camp. Washington's lone dress rehearsal came a week ago, a 3-2 overtime win over Boston.
Carbery is wary of a shorter camp and a two-game veteran limit on exhibition appearances. He pointed to Carolina's opener Tuesday as a lesson in how much faster the game gets once the games count.
The Hurricanes raised their second Stanley Cup banner that night, then lost 1-0 in overtime to Florida on a Gustav Forsling goal late in the extra session.
"Carolina makes it as difficult as any team in the National Hockey League in taking away time and space," Carbery said. His advice to his players was to keep it simple. "It doesn't have to be a home run; we can hit singles."
Centre Pierre-Luc Dubois said the group is eager. "Camp is always fun, getting back with everybody," he said. "But playing in the regular season is a lot different. It's a lot more fun."
