Capitals center Jay Beagle will play in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference semifinals despite a rare absence from the morning skate at Kettler Iceplex, according to coach Dale Hunter. Unknown how Beagle was hurt, though he did block a shot from Rangers defenseman Anton Stralman early in the second period on Monday’s Game 5 and limped off the ice. He eventually returned and finished the contest.
“Just resting his legs,” Hunter said, later adding “No, no, he’s fine, he’s going to play. He’s fine.”
Beagle’s not exactly the kind of guy that likes getting pushed out of his routine. Jeff Halpern did come off the ice early and it’s been a while since we’ve seen him not work out with the scratches after a morning skate. And there’s been at least one extra player taking warm-ups throughout the postseason – usually center Mathieu Perreault. We’ll have to see if either or both are out there for warm-ups tonight around 7 p.m. But sounds like Beagle will return. He only blocked the one shot on Monday.
“I can only imagine what [Beagle] is feeling like right now,” defenseman Karl Alzner said. “He hates to not skate. I’m sure he’s pretty upset about that. He does what he needs to do, and everybody’s helping him out taking the proper precautions.”
Didn’t see any line rushes so not sure which forwards will go together – though it seems unlikely we’ll get too much change. The defense pairings appeared to remain the same with Jeff Schultz skating with Dennis Wideman as the third unit. Otherwise, everyone was on the ice and is available to play.
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