Capitals Split Opening Back-to-Back After Carolina Rout

Washington opened the season with a 5-2 win at Carolina on October 2, led by Alex Tuch's two-goal debut, Logan Thompson's 31-save performance and goals from Ryan Leonard, Cole Hutson and Jakob Chychrun. The encouraging opener was followed by a 3-1 loss at Tampa Bay on October 4, with Justin Sourdif scoring Washington's lone goal.