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2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs Second-Round Series Preview: Washington Capitals vs. Carolina Hurricanes

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2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs Second-Round Series Preview: Washington Capitals vs. Carolina Hurricanes


Photo: John McCreary/NHLI via Getty Images

The Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes will meet for only the second instance all-time in the postseason during the second round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Carolina came back from 2-0 and 3-2 series deficits and took Game 7 of the 2019 first-round series in overtime. The best-of-seven series will kick off with Game 1 on Tuesday night at Capital One Arena (7 PM ET, ESPN).

SCHEDULE

Graphic: @Capitals

HOW THEY GOT HERE

Carolina: 47-30-5 regular-season record (.604 points percentage), second in Metropolitan Division; 4-1 first-round series win over New Jersey Devils

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Washington: 51-22-9 regular-season record (.677 points percentage), first in Eastern Conference; 4-1 first-round series win over Montreal Canadiens

REGULAR-SEASON SERIES

  • 12/20/2024: 3-1 Washington

  • 4/10/2025: 5-4 Washington (SO)

** N0te: Carolina hosted Washington, who played the second half of a back-to-back both instances they visited Raleigh, after coming off of two days of rested themselves each time

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REGULAR-SEASON TEAM LEADERS

Ovechkin (1.12, 73 in 65), who missed 16 games with a broken leg in November and December, and Strome (1.00) both averaged at least a point-per-game for Washington. Ovechkin, Tom Wilson (33-32-65 in 81), and Aliaksei Protas (30-36-66 in 76) all hit the 30-goal mark while Strome (29) came up just short. Connor McMichael (26-31-57 in 82), Jakob Chychrun (20-27-47 in 74), and Pierre-Luc Dubois (20-46-66 in 82) all eclipsed 20.

Aho and Jarvis were the only Hurricanes to finish the season on the roster and hit the 25-goal, 60-point marks, respectively, after the team traded Martin Necas in January and Mikko Rantanen at the trade deadline. Jarvis, Aho (29), Jack Roslovic (22), and Svechnikov (22) were the only Hurricanes to eclipse 20 goals.

FIRST ROUND TEAM LEADERS

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Svechnikov co-led the NHL in goals with Minnesota Wild left-wings Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy and Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon through five games of the first round league-wide.

Strome was just a helper shy of Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid and St. Louis Blues defenseman Cam Fowler of the league lead and co-led in points with Kaprizov and Fowler among players not participating in the Los Angeles Kings-Edmonton series.

REGULAR-SEASON TEAM STATISTICS

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Both teams had nearly identical goals-against totals and ranked in the top five league-wide when it came to penalty-killing, where Carolina led the pack. The Hurricanes finished with the lowest shots-against, where the Capitals ranked 10th.

While both squads finished above .5 in every possession metric, Carolina led the NHL in each category. However, Washington had the best shooting percentage and better save percentage.

FIRST-ROUND TEAM STATISTICS

The Capitals and Hurricanes had identical goals and goals-against per game averages but Carolina had significantly better special teams. The Hurricanes had a slight advantage in shot suppression, though both teams thrived in that area during the first round.

Washington had the better expected goals ratio but Carolina fared better in the other two possession metrics. The Capitals were also better at finishing their chances.

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GOALTENDING MATCHUP

Thompson, 28, performed better than Andersen, 35, in every category during the regular- and postseason. Andersen is expected to be ready after getting injured in the second period of Game 4 at New Jersey and not returning for the remainder of the first round.

Thompson played only one period against Carolina during the regular season, making nine saves on 12 shots-against (.750) on April 2. Andersen, 35, recorded a 1-0-1 record, .898 save percentage, and 2.41 goals-against average in the last two meetings.

Andersen topped both Thompson’s save percentage and goals-against average in four games during the first round.

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INJURIES

Washington

  • D Martin Fehervary (knee)
  • LW Sonny Milano (upper-body)
  • C Nicklas Backstrom (hip)
  • RW T.J. Oshie (back)

Carolina

WILL WIN IF

Washington: the team continues to control the puck against a strong possession team and does not allow Carolina to spend long amounts of time in the offensive zone; steal at least a game out of Raleigh after the Hurricanes went an Eastern Conference-best 31-9-1 at home (which was also second in the NHL) during the regular season and won all three games at Lenovo Center in the first round (Washington went 25-13-3 on the road in the regular season – tied league lead with Toronto Maple Leafs – before splitting two games in Montreal during the first round, Carolina has gone under .500 on the road with a 16-21-4 regular-season record and split two postseason away contests); they win the special teams matchup

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Carolina: Andersen outplays Thompson after falling to Andrei Vasilevskiy (Tampa Bay Lightning, 2021), Igor Shesterkin (New York Rangers, 2022/2024), Sergei Bobrovsky (Florida Panthers, 2023) the previous four seasons; they get scoring depth across their forward lineup; they turn their strong scoring-chance generation into more goals

X-FACTORS

Washington: C Pierre-Luc Dubois — The 26-year-old will likely get tasked with shutting down Aho and Svechnikov’s line after doing the same to Nick Suzuki’s in the first round. Dubois gives Washington an advantage down the middle, especially after Carolina parted with their second-line center in Necas during the regular season and may be vulnerable at that position. Dubois had a solid first round, when he tallied a .5386 five-on-five expected goals-for percentage, but he has more offense in him than the two assists he notched in five games vs. Montreal. If Dubois produces more offense than he did in the first round, it could be a big difference maker for Washington.

Carolina: Andersen — Carolina was arguably the better team in each of the last two series losses but fell because their opponent had the superior goaltending. Once again in this series, Washington likely has the edge in net after Thompson had a breakout regular season and shined again in the first round. The Hurricanes will need timely saves to build momentum that compliments their possession dominance in the offensive zone and Andersen needs to continue to put up the numbers he turned in against New Jersey to give his team a boost.

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PROJECTED LINES

Carolina

Svechnikov — Aho — Jackson Blake
Jordan Martinook – Jordan Staal — Jarvis
Taylor Hall – Jesperi Kotkaniemi — Logan Stankoven
Eric Robinson — Mark Jankowski — William Carrier

Slavin — Brent Burns
Dmitry Orlov — Jalen Chatfield
Shayne Gostisbehere – Sean Walker

Andersen
Pyotr Kochetkov

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  • Scratched
    • Roslovic
    • C Skylar Brind’Amour
    • C Tyson Jost
    • C Bradley Nadeau
    • D Riley Stillman
    • D Scott Morrow
    • D Domenick Fensore
    • G Spencer Martin

Washington

Ovechkin — Strome — Anthony Beauvillier
McMichael – Dubois — Wilson
Andrew Mangiapane – Lars Eller — Ryan Leonard
Brandon Duhaime — Nic Dowd — Protas

Chychrun — Carlson
Rasmus Sandin — Roy
Alexander Alexeyev – Trevor Van Riemsdyk

Thompson
Charlie Lindgren

  • Scratched
    • RW Taylor Raddysh
    • D Dylan McIlrath
    • D Ethan Bear
    • RW Ethen Frank
    • G Mitchell Gibson

BETTING ODDS (Caesers, as of 5/2)

  • Series Betting
    • Carolina: -175
    • Washington: +148
  • Series Score
    • Carolina 4-1: +500
    • Carolina 4-2: +350
    • Carolina 4-3: +475
    • Carolina 4-0: +900
    • Washington 4-3: +500
    • Washington 4-2: +675
    • Washington 4-1: +800
    • Washington 4-0: +1800
  • Total Number Of Games
    • 4: +600
    • 5: +260
    • 6: +190
    • 7: +200
  • Series Spreads
    • Series Handicap 2
      • Carolina +2.5: -800
      • Washington -2.5: +550
    • Series Handicap
      • Carolina +1.5: -320
      • Washington -1.5: +250
    • Series Handicap 3
      • Carolina -1.5: +120
      • Washington +1.5: -150
    • Series Handicap 4
      • Carolina -2.5: +270
      • Washington +2.5: -350

STAFF SERIES PREDICTIONS

  • Jon: Washington in 7
  • Ethan: Washington in 6
  • Della: Washington in 7
  • Diane: Washington in 7
  • Harrison: Washington in 6
  • Eric: Washington in 6
  • Aaron: Washington in 7

By Harrison Brown

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The Church of Jesus Christ has announced its 384th temple

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The Church of Jesus Christ has announced its 384th temple


The state of Washington is getting a seventh temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The Marysville Washington Temple was announced Sunday night during a devotional in the Marysville Washington Stake by Elder Hugo E. Martinez, a General Authority Seventy in the church’s United States West Area Presidency.

“We are pleased to announce the construction of a temple in Marysville, Washington,” the First Presidency said in a statement. “The specific location and timing of the construction will be announced later. This is a reason for all of us to rejoice and express gratitude for such a significant blessing — one that will allow more frequent access to the ordinances, covenants and power that can only be found in the house of the Lord.”

The other temples in Washington are the Columbia River, Moses Lake, Seattle, Spokane, Tacoma and Vancouver temples.

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The church has 214 temples in operation. Plans for another 170 temples have been announced; many of those temples are in various stages of planning and construction.

Sunday’s temple announcement follows the new practice of the church’s First Presidency, which determines where temples will be built — and when and how they will be announced.

The First Presidency directed a General Authority Seventy to announce the first temple in Maine at a fireside there in December.

In January, church President Dallin H. Oaks said the Maine announcement set the pattern for future temple announcements.

“The best place to announce a temple is in that temple district,” he told the Deseret News.

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The First Presidency will continue to decide where future temples will be built. It then will “assign someone else to make the announcement in the place where the temple will be built,” he said.

This pattern came to him as a strong impression after he assumed leadership of the church in October, following the death of his friend, President Russell M. Nelson.

This came as a strong impression to him shortly after he assumed the leadership of the church, President Oaks said.

The church remains in the midst of an aggressive temple-building era. President Nelson announced 200 new temples from 2018 to 2025. All but one were announced at general conference.

Five dozen temples are now under construction.

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President Oaks now has overseen the announcement of two temples, neither at a general conference.

At the October conference he said that “with the large number of temples now in the very earliest phases of planning and construction, it is appropriate that we slow down the announcement of new temples.”

Ten new temples are scheduled to be dedicated in the next six months.

  • May 3: Davao Philippines Temple.
  • May 3: Lindon Utah Temple.
  • May 31: Bacolod Philippines Temple.
  • June 7: Yorba Linda California Temple.
  • June 7: Willamette Valley Oregon Temple.
  • Aug. 16: Belo Horizonte Brazil Temple.
  • Aug. 16: Cleveland Ohio Temple.
  • Aug. 30: Phnom Penh Cambodia Temple.
  • Oct. 11: Miraflores Guatemala City Guatemala Temple.
  • Oct. 18: Managua Nicaragua Temple.

Two-thirds of the 170 temples still to be built are outside the United States.

Temples are distinct from the meetinghouses where Latter-day Saints worship Jesus Christ each Sunday. Temples are closed on Sundays, but they open during the week as sanctuaries where church members go to find peace, make covenants with God and perform proxy ordinances for deceased relatives.



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Washington football displays depth, talent at first spring scrimmage

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Washington football displays depth, talent at first spring scrimmage


On a perfect day in Seattle for football, Washington took the field inside Husky Stadium for its first scrimmage of spring practice, and ahead of his third season at the helm, Jedd Fisch seemed pleased with the results.

“Guys played and competed their ass off,” he said after the Huskies ran 120 plays. “That’s the type of day we want to have…We have a lot to work on, but we’re excited that today gave us this opportunity.”

The 120 plays had a little bit of everything, but the biggest thing the Huskies showed during the day was that, despite the inexperience that Fisch’s coaching staff is looking to lean on at several positions, there’s plenty of talent littering the roster. The best example of that is sophomore safety Paul Mencke Jr., who had his best practice in a Husky uniform after Fisch announced on Saturday that senior CJ Christian is out for the year after suffering a torn Achilles tendon during Tuesday’s practice at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.

“Paul’s done a great job of competing and being physical and playing fast, and you could see over these three years, he’s really grown into understanding now the system, and what’s asked of him as a safety,” Fisch said. “I think there’s a lot of in him that he wants to be like (safeties coach Taylor) Mays. He sees himself as a tall, linear, big hitter. So when you have your coach that is known for that type of play, I think Paul has done a great job.”

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Mencke was all over the field. Not only did he lay some big hits, just like his safeties coach did during his time at USC, but the former four-star recruit also tallied a pair of pass breakups, an interception in a 7-on-7 period, and multiple strong tackles to hold ball carriers to limited yards.

While the defense did a good job getting pressure throughout the day and making the quarterbacks hold the ball with different looks on the back end, with safety Alex McLaughlin, linebacker Donovan Robinson, and edge rusher Logan George all among the players credited for a sack, quarterback Demond Williams Jr. got an opportunity to show off how he’s improved ahead of his junior year.

Early on, he showed off his well-known speed and athleticism, making the correct decision on a read option, pulling the ball and scampering for a 25-yard gain before displaying his touch. Throughout the day, his favorite target was junior receiver Rashid Williams, whom he found on several layered throws of 15-plus yards in the various scrimmage periods of practice.

On a day when every able-bodied member of the team was able to get several reps of live action, here are some of the other noteworthy plays from the day.

Spring practice notebook

  • Freshman cornerback Jeron Jones was unable to participate in the scrimmage and was spotted working off to the side with the rest of the players rehabbing their injuries.
  • The running backs delivered a pair of big blows on the day. First, cornerback Emmanuel Karnley was on the receiving end of a big hit from redshirt freshman Quaid Carr before the former three-star recruit ripped off a 13-yard touchdown run on the next play. Later on, every player on offense had a lot of fun cheering on freshman Ansu Sanoe after he leveled Zaydrius Rainey-Sale, letting the sophomore linebacker hear all about it when the play was whistled dead.
  • Sophomore wide receiver Justice Williams put together a strong day with several contested catches, showing off his strong hands and 6-foot-4 frame, including a 25-yard catch and run off a drag route from backup quarterback Elijah Brown.
  • Of all the tackles for a loss the Huskies were able to rack up throughout the day, two stood out. First, junior defensive tackle Elinneus Davis burst through the middle of the line to wrap up freshman running back Brian Bonner. Later on, freshman outside linebacker Ramzak Fruean wasn’t even touched as he shot through a gap in the offensive line to track down a play from behind, letting the entire offensive sideline know about the play on his way back to his own bench.
  • The Huskies experimented with several defensive line combinations on Saturday, and for the first time this spring, it felt like freshman Derek Colman-Brusa took the majority of his reps alongside someone other than Davis, who he said has taken on an older brother role to help mentor the top-ranked in-state prospect in the 2026 class.

“Elinneus is a phenomenal guy. Great work ethic. He’s kind of taken on that older brother mentor for me. He’s been a great help just to learn plays and learn the scheme. Can’t say enough good things about the guy.”

  • Ball State transfer Darin Conley took a handful of reps with the first team, while rotating with Colman-Brusa, who got a lot of work in alongside Sacramento State transfer DeSean Watts.



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Sioux Falls art teachers show ‘incredible’ work at Washington Pavilion

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Sioux Falls art teachers show ‘incredible’ work at Washington Pavilion


Twenty Sioux Falls School District art teachers have their own original pieces on display at the Washington Pavilion’s University Gallery now through May 31.

The “Teachers as Artists” exhibit showcases their work not just as educators, but as artists inside and outside of the classroom, and highlights how art education builds critical thinking, creative problem-solving and self-expression skills.

Edison Middle School art teacher Meagan Turbak-Fogarty said she dreamt of such a showcase since her first year teaching.

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She and Kathy Dang, an art teacher at Marcella LeBeau Elementary School who also serves on the city’s Visual Arts Committee, partnered with the city and Washington Pavilion to bring the showcase to life.

Turbak-Fogarty has taught at Edison for five years and said her passion for art is “instantly felt” on her classroom walls, but that students have asked where they could see her art in the classroom, or what kind of art she creates in her own time.

“I always felt the feeling that I stand in front of all these kids every single day and preach about how much I love art, and how art has changed my life,” Turbak-Fogarty said. “That got me thinking, ‘I want to show them.’”

Some of her works on display at the Pavilion include art she created in her first year teaching, including a large Cheetos bag she created as an example for her eighth grade classroom when they were working on a large chip bag project. Turbak-Fogarty said she loves painting, working with acrylics and unconventional materials.

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“I wanted to show my students that art can be anything,” she said. “It doesn’t have to be hanging up in a museum to be considered art.”

Continuing to do her own art while teaching the subject helps keep her inspired, Turbak-Fogarty explained, adding that it helps her push her own creativity when it comes to projects she works on with students.

Samantha Levisay, an art teacher at John Harris Elementary School, showed three pieces in the show — “Moments in Time,” “Midnight Butterfly Garden” and “Whimsy” — with the same mixed media, watercolor and printmaking skills that she teaches in different units at every elementary grade.

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Levisay educates her students that “art is everywhere.” She said her favorite memories as an art teacher are “moments when I show students a lesson, and they take it even further.”

“Kids are so creative; I marvel at them all the time,” she said. “They inspire me every day with their endless creativity and imagination.”

Roosevelt High School art teacher Ruth Hillman showed two pieces in the show: “The Potato on the Wall,” a mixed media work, and a collection of her handmade clay charms in a shadow box.

She also wore some of her art — miniature potato earrings made of clay.

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Hillman is in her third year at RHS. When she’s not teaching art, she’s also making art, and sells her charms at shows like the Art Collective.

Washington High School art teacher Mollie Potter displayed a three-part painting series at the show that she said were inspired by her English language learner students’ stories, and how teachers help students “take flight,” as represented by balloons, parachutes and kites in her work.

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Porter said she is often inspired by her students’ art in the classroom; for example, one former student was obsessed with swans, and Porter said she later created a painting inspired by one of the student’s stories about swans.

At an April 17 reception, Mayor Paul TenHaken emphasized the arts as an “important economic driver in the community,” and said the show honored educators “who are artists in and of themselves,” but who might not have had a chance to display their art outside the classroom before.

“This is a way for us to honor them and show their incredible work,” TenHaken said.

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