Ben Raby, wtop.com

WASHINGTON - More often than not Sunday afternoon, Capitals coach Dale Hunter could look out on the sheet of ice at New York's Madison Square Garden and find a player he had coached long before any of them were earning NHL paychecks.

While Hunter's having coached Caps defensemen Dennis Wideman and John Carlson with the Ontario Hockey League's London Knights has been well chronicled, Sunday's game against the Rangers offered Hunter the chance to see three more of his former players.

Brandon Prust, who snapped a 48-game scoreless drought in the Rangers' 3-2 win over the Capitals, played for Hunter in London from 2002-05.

New York defensemen Dan Girardi (2005) and Michael Del Zotto (2009) also had brief stints with Hunter in the OHL.

"When they played for me," Hunter recently recalled, "Del Zotto was the offensive D, jumping into the rush and creating a lot of offense. Girardi was our shutdown guy -- he blocked shots and shut down people."

Girardi was acquired by London in 2005, joining a team that went on to win the Memorial Cup later that spring.

"Dale was a great coach for us," Girardi told WTOP. "We had a real old team, he gave us the guidelines and the game plan and he just let us play. He was good like that. He didn't say too much but when he said something it was obviously important and needed to be said. He did a great job handling all of us guys that year we won."

Girardi was never drafted by an NHL team, instead signing as a free agent with the Rangers in 2005. He has since emerged as one of hockey's elite shutdown defensemen, helping lead the Rangers to the top of the Eastern Conference this season.

But Girardi says that his career could have turned out much differently if not for his time with Hunter in 2005.

"I think that really jumpstarted my career," Girardi said of his experience with the eventual Memorial Cup champions. "Teams want guys that know how to win and can win those big championships even in a junior league. I think [Hunter] trading for me from Guelph was a big point in my career …Obviously it helped open some doors with the Rangers and now I'm here."

Girardi appeared in his first NHL All-Star Game last month and he leads all NHL players this season with an average of 27 minutes and 16 seconds of ice time per game. The 27-year-old is also fifth in the NHL this season with 133 blocked shots.

"Danny is a great shutdown defenseman and he blocks a lot of shots," Hunter said. "He was very good at it [in junior] and he's carried it over to the National Hockey League. Both [Girardi and Del Zotto] are kind of the same players that they were with me."

Del Zotto was an offensive-minded defenseman while playing for Hunter in London. Through 54 games this NHL season, he leads all Rangers defensemen with seven goals and 29 points.

"It was awesome," Del Zotto said of playing for Hunter in 2009. "They treat their players like pros and Dale has been through the ranks. He's played and so he understands how to treat the players. He was great for me."

Del Zotto, 21, was a secondary piece in a 2009 trade that also saw OHL MVP John Tavares land in London. But in 42 regular and postseason games with the Knights, Del Zotto recorded nine goals and 49 points and teamed up with John Carlson to form London's No.1 defensive pairing.

"[Hunter] is going to play his top guys, especially if they're playing well," Del Zotto said.

"But another great thing about him is that if you're not playing well and you're one of the big guys, he's not afraid to come after you and I think that's pretty important. You can't just let guys roam around and do whatever they want. They have to buy into the structure and buy into the team and he's not afraid to put his foot down."

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Catch the Capitals and San Jose Sharks Monday at 7:30 p.m. Coverage begins with Caps Pregame at 7:00 on Federal News Radio, WFED 1500AM and online here.

(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)

Ben Raby, wtop.com

MONTREAL - Earning shutouts against the Montreal Canadiens is starting to seem routine for the Washington Capitals. On Saturday, Tomas Vokoun became the third Caps goalie to blank the Canadiens in as many games as he stopped 30 shots in a 3-0 Washington win.

Michal Neuvirth blanked the Habs 3-0 on Jan. 18, while Braden Holtby earned a 2-0 win last March. Throw in Semyon Varlamov's shutout over Montreal Dec. 28, 2010, and the Caps have kept the Canadiens scoreless in four of their last six meetings overall.

But despite the frequency in which the Caps have shut down Montreal's offense, Saturday's shutout was a first for Vokoun against the team that drafted him in 1994.

Coincidentally, it was also his 47th career shutout, which allowed him to pass Canadiens Hall of Fame goalie Ken Dryden for 26th place on the NHL's all-time shutout list.

Vokoun was taken in the ninth round (226th overall) by Montreal in the 1994 NHL Entry Draft before going on to star with the Nashville Predators (1998-2007) and Florida Panthers (2007-11).

Given his success with both the Predators and Panthers, it's easy to forget that the Czech goalie made his NHL debut with Montreal in 1997.

Fifteen years ago Monday, Feb. 6, 1997, Vokoun made an emergency start for the Canadiens in what quickly became a humbling experience. Philadelphia's Mikael Renberg beat the 20-year-old Vokoun on the very first shot he faced in the NHL, and from there the Flyers rout was on.

Vokoun was lit up for four goals in the first period alone as the Flyers went on to beat the Canadiens 9-5.

"Obviously it didn't go as planned, but I'm still here 15 years later," Vokoun told WTOP last week. "It was a pretty tough experience, but on the other hand it was a big learning experience, too. It showed me that I needed to work harder on my game, on my [conditioning] and on my physical attributes. It was a good lesson -- not just in hockey but in life."

Vokoun lasted just 20 minutes in his first career NHL game before being replaced by fellow goaltending prospect Jose Theodore to start the second period.

"Obviously I wasn't comfortable at all," Vokoun said. "You picture playing your first game and having success and when you fail it's tough to swallow, but in the long run I think it did me a lot of good."

Vokoun wasn't exactly put in an enviable position either for his first career NHL start. The Canadiens had won just once in their previous seven games as they prepared to visit the eventual Eastern Conference champion Flyers.

Philadelphia was led by its famous "Legion of Doom" line of Eric Lindros, John LeClair and Renberg -- one of hockey's best trios of the past 25 years.

Against Vokoun and Theodore that night, Lindros, LeClair and Renberg combined for six goals, 16 points, a plus-16 rating and 21 shots on goal.

"Philadelphia was a pretty good team at that time too, but it was an opportunity," Vokoun said of his debut. "It wasn't a pleasant experience but just like with everything, when time passes you kind of look back and say, 'Well maybe that was the best thing that could have happened to me.'"

Vokoun's first taste of the NHL was brief and a return to the big leagues wasn't exactly imminent. He was eventually returned to the American Hockey League's Fredericton Canadiens where he remained for the next year and a half.

With Jocelyn Thibault, Andy Moog and Theodore all ahead of Vokoun on the Canadiens' organizational depth chart, it would have been easy for Vokoun to wonder if he'd ever get another shot in the NHL. But those doubts, he says, never entered his mind.

"I was pretty young back then and 20-year-olds don't think in long-term plans, so that made it a little bit easier," he said. "If it had happened to me when I was 30 years old, it would probably have been tougher.

"I was skilled enough to play -- I just wasn't prepared enough and that's something you could always fix. I just had to work harder and wait and make sure if I had another chance that I'd be ready."

That chance came in the summer of 1998, when Vokoun was left unprotected by Montreal before being selected by Nashville in the expansion draft.

It would take nearly two years from the time of his disastrous debut, but Vokoun was back in the NHL. He would continue to shuffle between the minors and the NHL for another few seasons, before emerging as a Nashville regular during the 2000-01 season.

By the time he would leave Tennessee in 2007, Vokoun had become (and still is) the team's all-time wins leader with 149 victories.

He also would top 100 wins with Florida before signing with the Capitals last summer. And since the 2002-03 campaign, Vokoun and Roberto Luongo are the only two goalies to have won at least 20 games each season.

His 670 games also rank 25th all-time among goalies, and he begins the week just 17 wins shy of 300 for his career.

Follow Ben Raby and WTOPSports on Twitter.

Catch the Capitals and Panthers Tuesday at 7:05 p.m. Coverage begins with Caps Pregame at 6:45 on Federal News Radio, 1500AM and online at federalnewsradio.com.

(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)

WASHINGTON - The NHL All-Star Weekend may be complete, but in the spirit of the NHL's midseason classic WTOP counts down the top five All-Star moments in Washington Capitals history:

• Feb. 5, 1993- Al Iafrate sets record with 105.2 MPH Slapshot: Capitals defenseman Al Iafrate impressed the Montreal Forum crowd at the 1993 Super Skills Competition firing a 105.2 MPH cannon to win the Hardest Shot event.

  Iafrate's record stood for 16 years before Bruins defenseman hit 105.4 MPH at the 2009 Super Skills Competition.

  One day after Iafrate's performance, his Capitals teammate Peter Bondra made his NHL All-Star Game debut. Bondra would go on to appear in a team-record five all-star games total, winning the Fastest Skater event in 1997 and 1999.

  In '93, Bondra recorded a goal and an assist as the Wales Conference beat the Campbell Conference 16-6. Former Caps forward Mike Gartner was named the game's MVP after scoring an all-star record four goals.

• Jan. 24, 2009- Alex Ovechkin wows Bell Centre crowd: Alex Ovechkin has never shied away from the spotlight, and one of the game's most exciting players stole the show at the Mecca of hockey in Montreal.

  Ovechkin brought some swagger to the Breakaway Challenge, loading up on props before heading to the net with a pair of sticks. Among Ovechkin's accessories was an oversized pair of sunglasses, a safari hat and a Canadian flag.

  One day later, Ovechkin had a goal, two assists and the shootout deciding tally as the Eastern Conference beat the Western Conference 12-11 before an all-star record crowd of 21,273.

• Feb. 12, 1985- A club-record four Capitals represent the Wales Conference: For the first time in franchise history, the Capitals had multiple players in the NHL All-Star Game.

  The Caps led the Wales Conference with four players. Forwards Bob Carpenter and Mike Gartner and defensemen Rod Langway and Scott Stevens. Carpenter, Langway and Stevens were all named to the Wales Conference starting lineup by the Professional Hockey Writers Association.

  The Wales Conference beat the Campbell Conference with Gartner becoming the first Capital to ever score in an NHL All-Star Game.

• Feb. 9, 1982 - The Capitals host the 34th NHL All-Star Game: The Capitals have played host to the NHL midseason classic only once in franchise history, doing so in February 1982 at the Capital Center in Landover, Md.

  A sellout crowd of 18,130 watched the Wales Conference beat the Campbell Conference 4-2. There has not been a lower scoring all-star game since. New York Islanders forward Mike Bossy was named the game's MVP after scoring twice, including the game-winning-goal.

  Capitals forward Dennis Maruk was Washington's lone representative and received the loudest ovation during pregame introductions. Maruk finished the game with an assist.

  Maruk would finish the 1981-82 NHL season third in the league with 60 goals and fourth in league scoring with 136 points.

• Feb. 1, 2003 - Caps Rookie Brian Sutherby Named YoungStars Game MVP: The Caps 1st round pick from the 2000 NHL entry draft was named MVP of the 2003 NHL YoungStars Game in Sunrise, FLA. Brian Sutherby had two goals (including the game-winning goal) and an assist as the YoungStars East beat the YoungStars West 8-3.

(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)

Ben Raby, wtop.com Twitter: @BenRaby31

WASHINGTON - The Capitals are off this weekend for the annual All-Star break and will reconvene Monday for a skate at the Kettler Capitals Iceplex. The Caps then begin a three-game road trip Tuesday in Tampa Bay.

Between now and Tuesday's game against the Lightning, D.C. puckheads searching for their hockey fix won't have to look very far:

• Friday, Jan. 27, 7:30pm, NBC Sports Network: One of hockey's oldest rivalries will be renewed Friday as the Yale Bulldogs visit the Harvard Crimson in NCAA Men's Hockey action.The game airs on the NBC Sports Network beginning at 7:30 p.m. with the radio voice of the Washington Capitals, John Walton calling the play-by-play. Walton, who says he last called an NCAA game in 2001 when Miami (Ohio) faced Ryan Miller and Michigan State, will work alongside former Boston Bruin and New York Islander General Manager Mike Milbury.

• Saturday, Jan. 28, 6pm, WFED 1500AM & www.wfed.com: It's an All-Star Weekend edition of Saturday Night Caps as we look back at the first half of the Caps 2011-12 campaign. Along with John Walton, Ken Sabourin and Ben Raby, guests this week include Comcast Sportsnet's Al Koken, Capitals forward Mathieu Perreault, and Ottawa Senators play-by-play voice Dean Brown.

• Sunday, Jan. 29, 4pm, WFED 1500AM & www.wfed.com: The 58th NHL All-Star Game goes Sunday afternoon from Ottawa, Ontario and can be heard exclusively in D.C. on WFED 1500AM. Coverage begins at 3:30 p.m. as Doug Brown hosts the NHL Radio pregame show. Dean Brown will work the radio play-by-play alongside color analyst Gord Wilson. Dennis Wideman is the lone Capitals representative in the NHL's midseason classic.

• Monday, Jan. 30, 7pm, CSN Washington: The American Hockey League's All-Star Game goes Monday night from Atlantic City. The game will air locally on Comcast Sportsnet with local Caps broadcasters Joe Beninati, Craig Laughlin and Alan May on the call. Three Hershey Bears will represent the Eastern Conference with Keith Aucoin, Chris Bourque and Boyd Kane all appearing in the AHL's midseason classic. Aucoin is appearing in his record-tying sixth AHL All-Star Game, and he leads the AHL in scoring this season with 68 points in 41 games. Bourque is second in league scoring with 62 points in 41 games. Kane, who made the Caps opening night roster in 2009-10 will captain the Eastern Conference all-stars.

(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)

Jonathan Warner, wtop.com

WASHINGTON - Should it matter that Alex Ovechkin is skipping this weekend’s NHL all-star game in Ottawa?

After all, the league suspended him for three games for launching himself into Penguins defenseman Zbynek Michalek Sunday.

Ovie knows that if he attended the game in Canada, it would be like jumping into shark-infested waters.   He’d be the story, fielding question after question about his style of play.

The weekend wouldn’t be fun for Ovechkin and that’s what the all-star game is supposed to be about.

Canadians love their hockey and love their Canadian hockey players.   The media there feeds the frenzy.   Ovechkin’s presence while under suspension would only reinforce their belief that he’s the league’s bad boy, especially with their hero and countryman, Sidney Crosby, still on the mend from a year long concussion.

If the NHL won’t allow him to play regular season games, Ovechkin feels he doesn’t deserve to be at All-Star weekend.    The Capitals support his decision and I’m sure most Capitals fans do as well.

Ovie’s first game back will ironically be in Canada, on February 4th at Montreal.

Till then, I hope he enjoys the time off on some warm beach and returns rested and ready to be The Great 8 once again.

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(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)

Ben Raby, wtop.com

WASHINGTON - Already without leading scorer Nicklas Backstrom because of a concussion and No.1 defenseman Mike Green due to a groin injury, the Capitals will now be minus captain Alex Ovechkin for the next three games.

Ovechkin was suspended Monday for "a charging incident in which he launched himself to hit Penguins defenseman Zbynek Michalek," according to a statement from the NHL. The hit occurred during the second period of the Caps 4-3 overtime loss Sunday in Pittsburgh.

In everyday terms, Ovechkin left his feet to complete a hit, the type of play the NHL is badly trying to remove from the game.

The hit also resulted in contact to Michalek's head, further adding to the NHL's concern while reviewing the play.

Ovechkin was not available to the media after the suspension was announced, but earlier in the day the Caps captain acknowledged that he and his teammates were looking to play a more physical brand of hockey in Sunday's second period.

"[When] we play aggressive," Ovechkin explained, "we have opportunities to win the game and to score goals. It's something that we were missing [last Friday] in Carolina and in the first period in Pittsburgh."

Ovechkin would not specifically discuss his hit on Michalek, waiting instead to speak with NHL head disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan.

Ovechkin had a telephone hearing with the NHL Monday afternoon.

As with all suspensions this season, Shanahan gave a thorough explanation of the league's decision in a two-minute, 32-second video which can be found on the NHL's official website.

"Although Michalek's shoulder might be the initial point of contact for this hit, the act of launching causes contact to Michalek's head," Shanahan explained. "Often on big hits or collisions, a player's feet will come off the ice slightly as a result of the impact. This, however, is not one of those occasions."

Ovechkin, 26, is a repeat offender, having twice been suspended during the 2009-10 season.

In Nov. 2009, Ovechkin received a two-game ban for a knee-on-knee hit with Hurricanes defenseman Tim Gleason. In March 2010, Ovechkin was suspended two games for a hit from behind on then-Blackhawks defenseman Brian Campbell.

The Capitals went 3-0-1 in the four games Ovechkin missed due to suspension that season, out scoring opponents 24-11.

"Instead of feeling sorry for yourselves and wondering what's going to happen," Mike Knuble said Monday, "it's a chance for guys to play more and to do well and to have maybe a bigger role than they normally would."

Knuble pointed to Mathieu Perreault as an example after the 24-year-old center saw top line minutes Sunday in Pittsburgh with both Backstrom and Marcus Johansson sidelined. Perreault had two assists and skated a career high 16:22 in the overtime loss.

"Alex takes up a big chunk of ice time on the power play and during the course of the game, and that time has to be dispersed and it's a chance for someone else to step up," Knuble said. "You don't want to go the long run like that, but on a game-to-game basis, some players have to look forward to the opportunity."

The three-game ban will cost Ovechkin $154,677.75 in forfeited salary. The money goes to the Players' Emergency Assistance Fund.

Ovechkin will miss Tuesday's home game against the defending Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins as well as road games next week in Florida and Tampa Bay.

The Capitals all-star has appeared in all 47 games this season collecting 20 goals and 39 points. He will be eligible to return Feb. 4 against the Montreal Canadiens.

As of Monday night, Ovechkin was still expected to take part in this weekend's All-Star game festivities in Ottawa.

Catch the Capitals and Bruins Tuesday at 7pm. Coverage begins with Caps Pregame at 6:45 p.m. on Federal News Radio, WFED 1500AM and online at www.wfed.com.

Follow Ben Raby and WTOP on Twitter.

(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)

RALEIGH, N.C.- Capitals goalie Michal Neuvirth was nearly flawless in Wednesday's 3-0 win in Montreal, turning aside 31 shots in his first start since Dec. 26.

But even before Neuvirth helped the Caps snap a two-game road losing streak, Caps Head Coach Dale Hunter had already decided that Tomas Vokoun (19-11-0, 2.53 GAA, .917 SV%) would return to the cage tonight against the Carolina Hurricanes.

Hunter had told his goalies of the plan upon their landing in Montreal and not even Neuvirth's second shutout of the season could change his mind.

"Michal hasn't played," Hunter said of the decision to rest Neuvirth again tonight. "He had lots of rubber in Montreal with the seven penalties that we had. He had to move side to side maybe a thousand times there. Definitely it's tiresome on the legs; he hasn't played for a while. It's good for him to get a rest here today anyways."

Vokoun will start for the 11th time in 12 games tonight as the Caps seek their first two-game road winning streak since winning in Ottawa Dec. 7 and in Winnipeg Dec. 15. The Caps have yet to win back-to-back games within the same road trip this season.

Vokoun made a season-high 43 saves in the Caps 2-1 win over Carolina last Sunday at Verizon Center and is 7-3-0 with a 2.07 goals-against-average and .936 save percentage in his last ten starts.

"You always have to perform, nothing is certain," Vokoun said. "If you don't perform then you're not going to be out there. So it's nice to get a vote of confidence but there are still a lot of games left and you still have to put good efforts out there."

The Hurricanes (16-24-8) are last in the Eastern Conference with 40 points but are 4-1-1 in their last six games at home. Cam Ward (16-17-7, 3.01 GAA, .905 SV%) will start in goal for Carolina.

TOP LINE MOJO:

Based on Friday morning's skate Marcus Johansson will once again center Washington's No.1 line tonight alongside Alex Ovechkin and Troy Brouwer.

With Nicklas Backstrom missing his eighth straight game with a concussion, Johansson is among a group of players who have been looked upon to raise their games in the absence of the team's leading scorer.

"There's no pressure to be Nick," Johansson said. "No one can be Nick. He's such an extraordinary player, you can't replace him. I'm just trying to play my game the way I always play. I'm still me, so I'm trying to do what I always do."

For Johansson, that means using his speed to help create scoring chances and utilizing his teammates. In his last six games, Johansson has three goals and five points.

THIS & THAT FROM A.M. SKATE:

Defenseman Tomas Kundratek will return to the Capitals lineup tonight after sitting as a healthy scratch Wednesday in Montreal. The 22-year-old has played four games since being recalled from AHL Hershey and is still looking for his first career NHL point…

…With Kundratek back in the lineup, defensemen John Erskine and Jeff Schultz will again watch tonight's game from the press box. Erskine will be a healthy scratch for the seventh time in ten games; Schultz for the 15th time in 17 games…

…Up front, Jay Beagle will also sit his second straight game as a healthy scratch, as Mathieu Perreault draws back into the lineup after recording his fourth goal of the season Wednesday in Montreal.

TONIGHT'S BROADCAST:

Catch the Capitals and Hurricanes at 7 p.m. Coverage begins with Caps Pregame at 6:45 on Federal News Radio, WFED 1500AM and online.

Tweet @Caps1500 with your predicition for tonight's game-winning goal scorer for a chance to win $50 at Carmine's Restaurant. Also tonight, we'll have a second intermission interview with Hurricanes defenseman and all-star representative Justin Faulk.

Follow Ben Raby and WTOPSports on Twitter.

(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)

Ben Raby, wtop.com

WASHINGTON - When the Capitals take the ice at Montreal's Bell Centre tonight, they will do so minus No.1 defenseman Mike Green and No.1 center Nicklas Backstrom.

Green has missed all but ten games this season, and 54 of 64 regular-season games dating back to Feb. 26, 2011. The two-time Norris Trophy nominee underwent abdominal surgery in St. Louis yesterday and is expected to miss four-to-six weeks.

Backstrom has not played since Jan. 3 when he took an elbow to the head from then-Calgary Flame Rene Bourque. The Capitals leading scorer is out with a concussion and will miss his seventh straight game tonight. He has not skated since Jan. 6 and there is no timetable for his return.

Bourque received a five-game suspension for his elbow on Backstrom and the Capitals were none too pleased with what they called a "cheap shot" from the final minutes of a 3-1 Caps win.

"He's got a little bit of an edge to him," Troy Brouwer said of Bourque after their Jan. 3 meeting. "Sometimes he crosses the line.

"It's one of those things where it kind of sucks because we're not going to play [him] again this year," Brouwer said.

That all changed last Thursday when Bourque was acquired by the Canadiens in the trade that sent Mike Cammelleri to Calgary. Now the Capitals will face Bourque, who has since apologized for the elbow, four more times this season.

"Usually an apology is never enough -- at least that's what it seems like," Caps defenseman Karl Alzner said. "But there hasn't been much talk about [retribution], at least not that I've heard, so I don't really know what's going on. We just have to play them hard and I think the best way to get back at somebody is just by hitting them, by outplaying them and by trying to score as many goals as you can. That's my personal philosophy -- but not everybody's."

HOMECOMING FOR HAMMER

Tonight's game in Montreal also marks the Bell Centre return for defenseman Roman Hamrlik, who spent four years with the Canadiens before signing a two-year deal with the Caps in the offseason.

"I'm looking forward to it," Hamrlik said of his Montreal return. "It's just another game, but I'm excited to go back. I played there for four years and it was probably [some] of my best four years, so I'm looking forward to it.

"I still have lots of friends there, I have such good memories from Montreal, but it's just another game and hopefully we can start winning on the road and [win] some big points. It's not easy to bring points from the road - especially Montreal, it's 22,000 people and I know they're going to come hard, they have lots of speed up front."

Hamrlik has a goal and five points in 40 games this season. He also leads the Caps with 84 blocked shots and has been paired primarily with all-star defenseman Dennis Wideman. Hamrlik began the year playing with Mike Green and has recently skated alongside rookie Tomas Kundratek.

In October, the 37 year old appeared in career game No. 1,315, passing countryman Bobby Holik for the most NHL games played by an Eastern European.

Hamrlik has now played 1,351 career games and recently passed former Canadiens captain Kirk Muller into 42nd place among the NHL's all-time games played leaders.

ROAD WOES FOR CAPS

The Capitals are in desperate need of a reversal of fortune on the road as tonight's game in Montreal kicks off a three-game trip.

While the Capitals' 17-6-1 record at home is tops in the Eastern Conference, Washington is also tied for last in the conference with Tampa Bay and Carolina with 15 points on the road.

"I'd like to think it's just a lull," Caps forward Mike Knuble said of the Capitals road struggles. "We all know how to win on the road. It's not a comfort thing -- it's not being a homer type team or anything like that. We've got guys in our locker room that have won a lot of games on the road in the past.

"It's just about kind of getting the right feel going, the right thoughts and playing a boring road game. I mean, we've played boring home games, so we need to play some boring road games and do the same thing on the road."

The Caps have lost five-of-six on the road with six of their next seven games being played outside the U.S. capital.

Head coach Dale Hunter can't explain the huge discrepancy in his team's play at home versus on the road, but he points to the special teams play as one explanation.

Consider that at home this season, the Caps' power play ranks 2nd in the NHL clicking at 24 percent while on the road, the Caps PP ranks 23rd at 13.6 percent.

Washington's penalty killing meanwhile ranks 6th at home at 86.8 percent and 27th on the road at 76.0 percent.

THIS & THAT

The Capitals are 12-9-1 under head coach Dale Hunter; Bruce Boudreau had the same record when he was fired Nov. 28… Former Canadiens draft pick Tomas Vokoun (9th round, 226th overall in 1994) picked up his 46th career shutout last week in a 1-0 win over Pittsburgh, tying him with Hall-of-Famer Ken Dryden for 26th all-time… The Capitals have gone 14 straight games without firing at least 30 shots on goal… The Caps have been outshot in five straight games and 10-of-11 overall…

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(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)

Ben Raby, wtop.com

WASHINGTON - The 6-foot-4, 253-pound defenseman affectionately known as "Juice" returns to Verizon Center tonight as the Capitals play host to Milan Jurcina and the New York Islanders for the first time this season.

Jurcina is in his second season patrolling the Islanders' blue line and will hit a personal milestone tonight when he skates in his 400th career NHL game.

The 28-year-old Slovak played in 211 games for the Caps from 2007-09 before he and former captain Chris Clark were traded to Columbus for Jason Chimera. Jurcina then signed with the Islanders in July of 2010.

"It's been good," Jurcina says of playing for an Islanders team that sits in last place in the Eastern Conference. "It's obviously not where we want to be, but we're working hard and doing everything we can [to improve]. It's just like when I came to Washington -- it's a process.

"The guys are young, they're learning the league, so we're still in a rebuilding mode, but these guys have a lot of potential. There is a lot of talent in this room and a lot of the right tools you need to be successful just as Washington is and was."

Jurcina arrived in Washington before the 2007 NHL trade deadline, joining a Capitals team that went on to miss the playoffs for a third straight season.

But less than one year later, the Capitals went on to win their first of four straight Southeast Division titles, led primarily by first round draft picks Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, Alexander Semin and Mike Green. Verizon Center was "Rocking the Red" and a winning culture had been created.

Four years later, Jurcina hopes to be part of a similar turnaround on Long Island.

"When I came down here there was nobody in the stands -- just like 10,000 fans -- but now for three years already I think they've been sold out every game," he says. "It's the same thing on Long Island -- there haven't been many fans but now they're starting to come to the games, they realize we're having some success so it's exactly the same process as we had in Washington. We have to keep going and stay patient and good things will happen."

Just as the Capitals have been built around No. 1 overall pick Ovechkin (2004) and a nucleus of young players, the Islanders are pinning their fortunes on first overall pick John Tavares (2009) and their own nucleus of young talent.

Tavares is the Islanders' leading scorer this season with 43 points in 43 games and enters play tonight on a career-high nine-game scoring streak (five goals and 16 points over that span).

The 21-year-old will represent the Islanders at this year's NHL All-Star Game, and has teamed up with fellow first-round pick Kyle Okposo and New York's leading goal scorer Matt Moulson to form one of the NHL's best young trios.

"They have the scoring touch those guys -- they're snipers," Jurcina says. "Every time you can, you just try to get them the puck and good things happen. They have great shots; they know how to move in the offensive zone, they have all the offensive talent so it's nice to have them on the team."

Jurcina has two goals and five points in 34 games this season and has played primarily with Islanders captain Mark Streit. Jurcina also has a minus-19 rating, third-worst in the NHL.

The eighth-round pick (241st overall) from the 2001 entry draft says he still keeps in touch with a number of former teammates, but he admits that the Capitals have a much different look since he last called D.C. home.

"We were just down in Anaheim and I saw [former Caps coaches] Bruce Boudreau and Bob Woods and it felt like I was playing the Washington Capitals down in California," Jurcina says. "But when I look at the roster now, there's been a lot of change, a lot of new guys and new faces."

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(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)

Ben Raby, wtop.com

WASHINGTON - The Capitals announced Monday that defenseman Mike Green will undergo abdominal surgery and is expected be out four-to-six weeks.

Monday's news is the latest setback in what is quickly becoming a season to forget for the two-time Norris Trophy nominee.

Heading into Tuesday's game against the New York Islanders, Green has missed 33 of the last 36 games dating back to Oct. 27. Green has also missed 53 of the last 63 regular season games dating back to Feb. 26, 2011.

The 26-year-old has been sidelined this season with ankle and groin injuries and has completed just one of the three games he's played in since Oct. 22. Green has not skated since leaving a Jan. 7 game in San Jose after aggravating his previously injured right groin.

The Capitals are 9-1-0 with Green in the lineup this season (including a 7-0-0 start to the year in October) and the puck moving defenseman has collected three goals and three assists.

Without Green's services for much of the season, Dennis Wideman has seen increased ice-time and top power play minutes.

Wideman is fourth among NHL defensemen with eight goals (through Monday) and fifth among blueliners in overall scoring with 31 points. Wideman was also named to his first career NHL all-star game last Thursday.

Rookie defenseman Dmitri Orlov may also be relied upon more in the coming weeks as his game continues to grow. The 20-year-old has played 25 games since being recalled from AHL Hershey Nov. 21 and notched his first career NHL goal in Sunday's 2-1 win against Carolina.

CAPS 1500 ON SOCIAL MEDIA:

On a lighter note, the Capitals Radio Network continues to expand its brand with flagship station WFED 1500AM.

The broadcast team can be reached via Twitter @Caps1500 and on Monday radio play-by-play voice John Walton helped launch the Capitals Radio Network's Facebook page.

Catch the Capitals and New York Islanders Tuesday at 7 p.m. Coverage begins with Caps Pregame on Federal News Radio, WFED 1500AM and online at wfed.com.

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(Copyright 2012 by WTOP. All Rights Reserved.)