Washington Capitals at Vancouver Canucks: game preview
WashingtonCapitals2026-27: 1-1-0 · 2 pts · 2025-26: 43-30-9 · 95 pts · 12that
VancouverCanucks2026-27: 2-2-0 · 4 pts · 2025-26: 25-49-8 · 58 pts · 32ndThirty-seven points apart last season
Washington finished last season 12th in the league on 95 points. Vancouver finished 32nd on 58.
Game-day prices arrive with the afternoon snapshot, about 4:30 PM ET on the day of the game.
Meeting number 111
Across 110 completed games, Washington lead the head-to-head 59-46-5.
Last 5 meetings
See all: Last 5 meetings →The table on each 2025-26 meeting night
League rank after that night's games; a longer bar is a higher place. On 19 Oct 2025, Washington were 9th in the league and Vancouver 11th. By 21 Jan 2026 it was 19th and 32nd.
Washington out-attempted Vancouver 150 to 91
Every attempt from the last meetings, both teams shooting right.
Washington Capitals
Vancouver Canucks
Washington have created the better chances, last 10 games
Shot quality both ways: expected goals weigh every unblocked attempt by its chance of scoring. Finishing above zero means more goals than the chances.
This season: 2 games for Washington, 4 for Vancouver. Small sample: early-season xG moves a lot from night to night.
Last 10 games: 10 games for Washington, 10 for Vancouver.
2025-26: 82 games for Washington, 82 for Vancouver.
Power play and penalty kill, season and series
This season's rates first, then 2025-26 and the last meetings between the two. Power-play chances are counted from the penalty log with coincidental minors cancelled; faceoffs are each club's wins over draws taken.
All bars share one scale · 0–100%SeasonLast meetings
Washington
Small sampleVancouver
Small sampleSkaters to watch
Each club's top three forwards and defencemen by points this season, with 2025-26 one tap away.
Who has stopped this matchup
Save percentage in the last meetings by goalie. Starters are confirmed on game day.
Expected starter after their game on 5 Dec: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.
Expected starter after their game on 5 Dec: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.
Washington crease
WSH · 2026-27 Starter estimate from 4 Dec
No appearances against Vancouver in the last meetings.
Vancouver crease
VAN · 2026-27 Starter estimate from 4 Dec
No appearances against Washington in the last meetings.
Scoring rates point to about 6.6 goals
No total is posted yet: it arrives with the game-day prices. Until then, the scoring rates and the recent meetings set the range.
Goals in the last 5 meetings
Bar length is total goals, coloured by the winner.
Scoring rates
Washington3.002.503.212.98
Vancouver4.754.502.633.85Goals for and against per game. The estimate averages each team’s scoring with the other’s goals allowed, and leans on 2025-26 until a team has played 20 games.
8 on the injury lists
Washington · injuries
Vancouver · injuries
Latest moves
See all: Latest moves →Placed G Clay Stevenson, D Louie Belpedio, C Mike Brodzinski and RW Spencer Smallman on waivers. Released G Cal Petersen and D Jonathan McDonald from their professional tryout agreements. Assigned LW Maxim Schäfer to Cape Breton (QMJHL).
Placed G Clay Stevenson, D Louie Belpedio, C Mike Brodzinski and RW Spencer Smallman on waivers. Released G Cal Petersen from his professional tryout agreement.
Placed D Justin Holl on waivers for the purpose of being loaned to Hershey (AHL).
Placed G Nikita Tolopilo on waivers.
Claimed G Leevi Merilainen off waivers from Ottawa. Placed F Filip Chytil on injured reserve. Assigned F Braeden Cootes to Abbotsford (AHL).
Assigned Fs Ty Mueller, Riley Patterson, Ilya Safonov and Chase Wouters, Ds Kirill Kudryavtsev and Sawyer Mynio to Abbotsford (AHL). Loaned F Ben Berard and D Isaac Belliveau to Abbotsford. Waived for the purpose of assignment to Abbotsford F Trey Fix-Wolansky and Ds Cole Clayton and Jimmy Schuldt.
Washington · 2026 draft
See all: Washington · 2026 draft →Vancouver · 2026 draft
See all: Vancouver · 2026 draft →Monday 7 December · the full slate
See all: Monday 7 December · the full slate →
Updated after every final