The Washington Capitals will line up with the primary goaltending tandem from this year’s Hershey Bears for at least two more games.

Although Logan Thompson skated for a second straight day, Caps head coach Spencer Carbery ruled him out of Monday night’s game against the New York Islanders. Thompson’s absence will see Clay Stevenson make his second NHL start this season, and he’ll again be backed up by Garin Bjorklund as Charlie Lindgren remains on injured reserve.

“Logan will not play tonight,” Carbery said. “Will not back up. He’s real close. We’re going to still call him day-to-day, and just for the purposes of clarity, for his situation, the target is for him to come back before the break. The target is for him to play against Nashville.”

Stevenson secured his first career NHL win against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday night, making 19 saves in the Capitals’ 4-3 overtime comeback.

With the Capitals playing on back-to-back days, it’s possible that Stevenson could also start against the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday, but Carbery left open the possibility for Bjorklund to “potentially” make his NHL debut at Philadelphia’s Xfinity Mobile Arena.

Bjorklund has played in the preseason with the Capitals before, but the 2020 sixth-round pick has just 13 games of AHL experience under his belt. Stevenson regularly starts on back-to-back days in the AHL, so the Caps could opt to have him do the same in the NHL.

Carbery also shared that while Lindgren will be out of action until the Olympic break, there is “no possibility he’s out further.”

On defense, the Capitals could get Matt Roy back, but Carbery listed him as questionable, effectively a game-time decision. If Roy is healthy enough to return, the Caps would then place Thompson on injured reserve retroactive to January 28, freeing up a roster spot. Martin Fehervary will be back after missing Washington’s last game for the birth of his first child.

Martin Fehervary and his girlfriend Natalia welcomed their first child, a daughter named Anna during Saturday’s game. Fehervary said he was so “starstruck” upon seeing her he wasn’t sure whether they’d had a boy or girl at first.

— RMNB (@rmnb) February 2, 2026

The Capitals will be looking to win a third game in a row when they host the Islanders on Monday night. The Islanders are the team they are currently chasing for a playoff spot, sitting four points behind them for third in the Metropolitan Division.

New York does hold a game in hand on the Capitals in that race. They lost their last game, 4-3 to the Nashville Predators, on Saturday night.