Capitals To Evaluate Matt Roy For Injury

The Washington Capitals will need to assess an injury when they return from a two-game road trip to start the season. Defenseman Matt Roy did not appear in the final 25 minutes of Friday night’s loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning due to a lower-body injury. It was not clear when the injury occured. Head coach Spencer Carbery told reporters, including Chris Cerullo of RMNB, that the team will evaluate the extent of his injury once back in Washington D.C..

Roy appeared in 14:22 before going down with injury. He recorded no scoring and two hits. Roy was Washington’s most-used defenseman in their season opener, appearing in 22:29 and recorded three hits and five shot blocks. The Capitals rotated the other five defenders in their season opener, with Vincent Desharnais the only other to record more than 20 minutes of ice time. That plan flipped in Friday’s matchup against Tampa Bay. The Capitals leaned heavily on their left-defenders once Roy went down, icing Jakob Chychrun for 27:11 and Cole Hutson for 21:03. Their ice time was helped along by a game that featured five Tampa Bay penalties. Meanwhile, Desharnais and Timothy Liljegren appeared in fewer than 18 minutes.

Chychrun turned his scoring into a streak on Friday – recording one assist against Tampa Bay to go with the two points he scored in the opener. Hutson also recorded a goal. They are likely to be elevated in Roy’s absence – providing a boost of scoring, though the Capitals will need to find a way to inject more physicality. Roy led the Capitals blue line in hits (116) and ranked second in shot blocks (146) last season. He also recorded the third-best xGA/60 (expected goals-against per-60 minutes) on the blue line last season with a 2.64, roughly 0.1 below the team average. Around multiple scorers, Roy stands as Washington’s shutdown defender – a role that could be passed to Martin Fehervary in his absence.

Washington could also choose to promote extra defender Dylan McIlrath to the lineup if they’re without Roy. McIlrath has served as Washington’s extra defender through the last four seasons. He has totaled four points, a minus-nine, and 50 penalty minutes in 39 games with the Capitals. He has also recorded 31 shot blocks and 87 hits – providing the physical presence that Washington would be searching for without Roy. The Capitals could also use a minor-league call-up to bring up Ryan Chesley or Justin Holl for a bit more depth. First, the club will need to determine the extent of Roy’s injury.