Pre-Game: Capitals @ Flames

The Capitals start the first of their three game road trip against the Flames tonight. The last time these two played, Olaf Kolzig picked up his 300th win. This win came three days after a crushing defeat at the hands of the Pittsburgh Penguins (with help from Nicklas Backstrom).

With the win against Calgary, the Caps finished the season with an 11-1 record.

The Capitals are going to go with Jose Theodore in net. Jose looks like he is feeling a little more comfortable in net after a shaky start. As Japer's Rink points out, Brent Johnson has played more minutes than JT60 so far.

This game will showcase some of the most exciting talent in the league as Ovechkin, Green, Semin, Iginla, Phaneuf, and Kiprusoff are all household names.

Now would be a good time for AO to play like the AO we all know. He is on track for under 50 points which is a half (maybe a third) of what he is capable of. Theodore will most likely play the next three out of four games, either resting in Dallas, or the first game home against the Preds.

Each game, I will offer up three predictions for players from both sides and compare my forecast with actual stats in my post-game blog.

Predictions:

Washington

Alex Ovechkin- 2 Goals, 1 Assist. Comments- He'll give fans their loonie's worth.

Mike Green- 0 Goals, 1 Assist. Comments- No goals in his homecoming, but watch for bone-rattling hits from Mike "Game Over" Green.

Fleischmann-Nylander-Bradley Line- 2 Goals, 4 Assists. Comments- This line will click instantly. Nyles will love feeding the puck to the rejuvenated Flash, and Bradley is the prefect compliment for those two with his fore checking and grind-it-out style.

Calgary

Dion Phaneuf- 1 Goal, 0 Assists. Comments- He'll pick up his first goal of the season and double Mike Green's hit total.

Jarome Iginla- 1 Goal, 2 Assists. Comments- With all of his points coming on the power play, Washington will continue to be a victim of delaying the game and laying the lumber.

Miikka Kiprusoff- 34 Saves. Comments- Calgary would be blown out if it wasn't for this game changer. With Kippy in net, Calgary has a chance to contend in every game.

Final Score

Washington 4 Calgary 3

Comments- Goals aplenty as shaky defense and bad penalties plague both teams. Capitals play catch-up again and score twice in the third period to pull out another close victory.