48-game schedule on the way for Capitals

Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals will be on the ice in less than two weeks, as according to Elliotte Friedman of Hockey Night in Canada, a 48-game NHL season will start on Jan. 19. The actual schedule will not be released for another couple of days, according to Aaron Portzline of The Columbus Dispatch.

The Capitals are coming off a roller-coaster ride of a season that saw them finish seventh in the Eastern Conference before beating the defending champion Boston Bruins in the first round of the playoffs. Washington then took the top-seeded New York Rangers to seven games before bowing out. All of this came after Bruce Boudreau was fired as head coach in the middle of the season.

Washington made quite a few changes to the team this summer, but the biggest may have been the hiring of head coach Adam Oates. Also of great importance was the re-signing of defenseman Mike Green.