With the Washington Capitals' preseason home opener Monday night at Verizon Center, there was an abbreviated morning skate Monday morning at Kettler Capitals Iceplex. The line combinations during the skate were as follows:
Alex Ovechkin - Nicklas Backstrom - Troy Brouwer
Alexander Semin - Marcus Johansson - Mike Knuble
Cody Eakin - Mathieu Perreault - Chris Bourque
Matt Hendricks - Jeff Halpern - Jay Beagle
Jeff Schultz - Mike Green
Roman Hamrlik - Dennis Wideman
Dmitry Orlov - Patrick McNeill
Michal Neuvirth left the ice first, meaning he will likely get the start. Brouwer will make his debut on the top line with Ovechkin and Backstrom, who is making a return to the top line in his own right after spending time in training camp on the second line.
The scratches Monday are likely to be Jason Chimera, D.J. King, Mattias Sjogren, Joel Ward, Karl Alzner, John Carlson, John Erskine and Sean Collins.