Caps Game Day – 7 p.m. vs. St. Louis

What – Game #23

Where – Verizon Center

When – 7 p.m.

TV – CSN HD

Radio – WFED-1500 AM

The Capitals play their first game under new coach Dale Hunter on Tuesday night. You can expect a warm reception from the Verizon Center crowd. How long the good feelings last depends on how Washington fares. This 5-9-1 stretch cost Bruce Boudreau his job on Monday and the Caps looked lost in a 5-1 defeat at Buffalo on Saturday night.

All players remained on the ice for the morning skate. Hunter then held about a 45-minute team meeting with his players before speaking with reporters. But it’s also been one day. There’s only so much that can be done implementing new systems.    

“Not trying to change too much right now,” Hunter said.  

They face a St. Louis Blues team that has already gone through a coaching change of its own. Since Ken Hitchcock took over on Nov. 8, the Blues are 7-1-2. Their goalies have been routinely excellent and the Caps will see old nemesis Jaroslav Halak, who famously beat them in that Stanley Cup playoff series two springs ago.  St. Louis has allowed just 11 goals during this torrid stretch and never more than two in a game. Halak and Brian Elliott have each received five starts in these 10 games.  

Meanwhile, Washington defenseman Mike Green (right groin) skated for the third time in four days – this time for about 40 minutes. That’s a good sign. The Caps need him back. Was a busy morning at Kettler Iceplex so we didn’t get a chance to catch up with Green. Hope to touch base Wednesday and see how he’s progressing. For now, the team still lists him as day-to-day. He has missed 14 of the last 15 games with ankle and groin injuries.   

Defenseman John Erskine appears ready to return. He has missed four games with a sore left shoulder, aggravated after a fall in practice on Nov. 20. Erskine didn’t make his season debut until Nov. 1 thanks to surgery on that same left shoulder over the summer. He takes over for defenseman Jeff Schultz, who took part in the scratches’ skate with forward Mathieu Perreault. Hunter has tabbed Tomas Vokoun to start in goal against the Blues.

Good bet that rookie defenseman Dmitry Orlov will see some time on the power play. The lines are expected to look about the same as before Boudreau was fired. Not sure on the defense pairings as of yet.

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