There's no other way to put it right now: the Washington Capitals have been scuffling recently and have issues that they very much need to work out. They will get their chance this afternoon when they host the Ottawa Senators.
After back to back losses to the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Vancouver Canucks, the Caps certainly wish to pick up a win here to inch closer to reclaiming the division lead in the Southeast. They are currently two points behind Tampa Bay and because the Lightening are idle today, they can tie for the division lead with a victory.
The Caps biggest issue in this recent tough stretch has been their power play numbers. Washington has scored just four goals in their last 45 power play opportunities. Needless to say, this needs to get fixed if the Caps want to right the ship this season. Another issue in the last few games is that they have found them selves at a two man disadvantage far too many times, and are paying for it as a result. Both the penalty kill and power play unit for the Caps will be something worth watching today as they will face a Senators team that is struggling right now.
The good news for the Caps is that they have won their first two meetings with the Senators, including the win that snapped a frustrating 8 game losing streak just before the Winter Classic.