Caps hope setback an outlier as West Coast trip ends in San Jose

The Eastern Conference-leading Washington Capitals have not often searched for a rebound performance this season.

The Eastern Conference-leading Washington Capitals have not often searched for a rebound performance this season.

However, the Capitals will be on the hunt for a much-improved effort when they visit the San Jose Sharks on Saturday in the last outing in a three-game California road trip.

The Capitals saw their five-game winning streak snapped with a disappointing 3-0 loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday. The final score only told part of the tale.

"I didn't think we were very good at all, starting from the first period," Washington coach Spencer Carbery said. "I thought we were hanging around, so you're hoping that you can find something at some point, because the game was obviously tight, but we just never found it. You could tell right away that we were off. The power play was not good early in that game. We had two in the first period, so your antennas are up right away."

Not only were the Capitals blanked, but Alex Ovechkin -- who needs nine goals to break Hall of Famer Wayne Gretzky's NHL record of 894 goals -- was held without a shot on net for the first time since the season opener.

The Capitals only generated 21 shots as a team against a Kings club that plays very strong team defense.

"We've got to find a way through in the neutral zone, to not get squeezed out to the boards too early, get the puck into the middle and then kick it out," Capitals center Lars Eller said. "That's something we've got to learn from and look at to get better, because ... that was missing."

The Sharks, who sit at the bottom of the league standings, head into the clash on a positive.

San Jose is back in action after claiming a 4-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday. The win snapped a three-game losing skid.

Earning that victory will mean nothing to San Jose's all-but-snuffed playoff hopes, but it does bring the club within four points of the Blackhawks in a quest to move out of the league basement.

The game also provided proof of growth for the young club, which has played three games of an eight-game homestand.

"I didn't love our second period, but I thought we played a mature third period," San Jose coach Ryan Warsofsky said. "That's the positive, I would say, on top of the win. We saw more maturity in our game in the third period, with the lead."

As difficult as this season has been for the Sharks, their goal of building for the future continues to show positive signs, especially from their crop of rookies.

Macklin Celebrini is tied for goals among league freshmen with 20 and second with 49 points. Will Smith, who is riding a five-game point-scoring streak (three goals, four assists) is fourth among rookies with 35 points, but the excitement does not end there.

Rookie Collin Graf scored twice against the Blackhawks, has tallied in consecutive games and has netted three goals and two assists over his past five outings.

"I'm trying to get more comfortable out there. I think a big thing for me is just going to the net," Graf said. "Once I go there, I'm playing with skilled players, so the puck finds me and just try to whack it in."

On Friday, the Sharks summoned from the minors Zack Ostapchuk, a forward acquired from the Ottawa Senators at the trade deadline.

--Field Level Media