"With much still to be determined about how this year plays out for the Capitals, no one needs to remind the players of the importance of each of the final 34 contests in the regular season.

They know there's plenty of room left for improvement but that they need to make those strides as quickly as possible, beginning with back-to-back games against Tampa Bay and Florida.

"It's down to crunch time," Coach Dale Hunter said. "You're going down the home stretch, every point means a lot. All these games [end up] being playoff type hockey games.""