The Chicago Blackhawks (15-18-7) play their first road game of the new calendar year against the Washington Capitals (21-15-5) at Capital One Arena on Saturday night. It’s the first of two meetings between the Blackhawks and Capitals this season, with the second coming in just six days on Jan. 9.
Last time out, the Blackhawks defeated the Dallas Stars 4-3 at the United Center to start the New Year with a bang. Ilya Mikheyev scored twice, while Artyom Levshunov and Teuvo Teravainen also found the back of the net. Ryan Donato and Andre Burakovsky each tallied two assists. Spencer Knight made 22 saves for his 11th win of the season.
The Blackhawks have now earned points in back-to-back games entering Saturday and sit only six points back of a playoff spot in the Western Conference. However, they are still the third-worst team in the conference, with the Vancouver Canucks and Winnipeg Jets as the only clubs below them.
The Capitals opened 2026 with a 4-3 road loss to the Ottawa Senators on Thursday. Washington raced out to a 2-0 lead in the first period with goals from Tom Wilson and former Blackhawk Dylan Strome, but the Senators scored four of the next five goals for the comeback victory. Aliaksei Protas was the other goal scorer for the Capitals in the game.
Washington currently sits in the top wildcard playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with 47 points through 41 games. They are tied with the Philadelphia Flyers for the third-most points in the Metropolitan Division, but the Flyers hold the tie breaker with the better overall points percentage.
Here’s everything to note before the puck drops at 6:00 p.m. CT in Chicago.
Blackhawks Regular Season Notes (Last Five Games)
While the losing skid hit six games, the Blackhawks put together one of their best games of the month against the Philadelphia Flyers. But without Bedard and Nazar, the offense couldn’t get enough run support to come away with a low-event win. The Flyers walked out of the United Center with a 3-1 victory.
In their first game out of the Christmas break, the Blackhawks impressively took down the Dallas Stars, the NHL’s second-best team, 4-3 in a shootout. It’s the first win for Chicago since Connor Bedard got injured on Dec. 12.
The back end of a back-to-back continues to go horribly wrong for the Blackhawks. They’ve now been outscored 27-7 in four games when playing twice in as many nights after a 7-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Blackhawks rallied from an early 2-0 deficit but couldn’t complete the comeback in overtime. Bo Horvat scored the lone shootout goal to lift the New York Islanders to a 3-2 win.
What a start to 2026! Ilya Mikheyev scored twice to help the Blackhawks beat the Stars 4-3 at the United Center. It’s Chicago’s second win in five days over Dallas.
Blackhawks Projected Lineup
Forward Lines
Tyler Bertuzzi — Ryan Greene – Andre Burakovsky
Teuvo Teravainen — Oliver Moore — Nick Lardis
Ryan Donato — Jason Dickinson — Ilya Mikheyev
Colton Dach — Nick Foligno — Landon Slaggert
Defensive Pairings
Alex Vlasic-Louis Crevier
Wyatt Kaiser-Artyom Levshunov
Matt Grzelcyk-Connor Murphy
Scratched
D — Ethan Del Mastro, F — Sam Lafferty, F — Dominic Toninato
Injured
F — Connor Bedard (shoulder), F — Frank Nazar (face)
***
The Blackhawks are expected to roll with the same forward lines and defensive pairings from Thursday’s win over Dallas.
Capitals Projected Lineup
Forward Lines
Aliaksei Protas – Dylan Strome – Alex Ovechkin
Connor McMichael – Justin Sourdif – Tom Wilson
Anthony Beauvillier – Nic Dowd – Ryan Leonard
Brandon Duhaime – Hendrix Lapierre – Ethen Frank
Defensive Pairings
Rasmus Sandin – John Carlson
Jakob Chychrun – Matt Roy
Martin Fehervary – Trevor van Riemsdyk
Scratched
D — Declan Chisholm, D — Dylan McIlrath, F — Sonny Milano
Injured
F — Pierre-Luc Dubois (lower body)
Projected Goaltending Matchup
Spencer Knight (11-11-6, 2.63 GAA, .909 Sv%, 2 SO) vs. Logan Thompson (15-11-3, 2.39 GAA, .913 Sv%, 2 SO)
Knight will make his 29th start of the season in net for the Blackhawks. The 24-year-old netminder stopped 22 of 25 shots faced in a win over Dallas in his most recent outing on Thursday. Knight is 1-2-0 with a 3.84 GAA and .882 Sv% in four career games against Washington.
Thompson will make his 30th start of the season in net for the Capitals. The 28-year-old allowed four goals on 32 shots faced in a loss to Ottawa in his last start on Thursday. Thompson is 4-1-1 with a 1.97 GAA, .930 Sv%, and one shutout in six career games against Chicago.
2024-25 Results vs. Capitals
The Blackhawks and Capitals split the season series in 2024-25, with the home team winning both matchups. The two teams will meet again in just six days for the second and final meeting of the 2025-26 campaign.
12/17/24 — 3-2 W, United Center
04/04/25 — 5-3 L, Capital One Arena
2025-26 Team Stats & Leaders
Chicago Blackhawks:
Goals — Connor Bedard (19)/Tyler Bertuzzi (19)
Assists — Connor Bedard (25)/Artyom Levshunov (17)
Points — Connor Bedard (44)/Tyler Bertuzzi (30)
GF/GP — 2.78 (24th)
GA/GP — 3.18 (20th)
PP% — 21.1% (12th)
PK% — 83.6% (4th)
FOW% — 46.4% (31st)
Washington Capitals:
Goals — Tom Wilson (22)
Assists — Dylan Strome (23)
Points — Tom Wilson (42)
GF/GP — 3.24 (9th)
GA/GP — 2.78 (8th)
PP% — 16% (28th)
PK% — 76.7% (25th)
FOW% — 48.9% (23rd)
How To Watch, Listen, & Game Info
Chicago Blackhawks (15-18-7, 37 points) @ Washington Capitals (21-15-5, 47 points)
6:00 p.m. CT — Capital One Arena
Head Coaches: Jeff Blashill (CHI), Spencer Carbery (WSH)
TV/Stream: CHSN (Ball/Pang), MNMT
Radio: WGN 720 AM (Wiedeman/Konroyd)
For more Blackhawks news, visit Chicago Hockey Now and like our Facebook Page.
Follow us on X: