Preds Come To Washington

Capitals vs. Predators Preview

Capitals are 1-0 versus western teams. It was their home opener win against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Now they face one of the hottest teams in the west. The Nashville Predators are the surprise team of the season and most of the praise goes to Paul Kariya. Since his arrival to Music Town, the Preds have been hard to stop this season.

The Capitals have to come at the Preds with an aggressive forecheck and play with as much intensity as they did against the Rangers. The Caps have the right system to keep teams that are hot in the scoring column to a minimum if they show up to play tonight.

The game tonight starts a 4 game stretch against the west, with the Detroit Red Wings in town on Friday, then a west coast swing to play the L.A. Kings and San Jose Sharks. This should test the Caps against good teams on the long road trip. This will be a quick trip considering in January the Caps go on a three game swing to the west to play Dallas, Phoenix, and Anaheim.

The Caps should surprise the Preds early in the game; Alex Ovechkin should be able to exploit the defense early. The Caps once again must bring their lunch pales and hard hats and be prepared to come to work. Fearless Prediction: Caps 4, Preds 2.