“You’re going to have to put on your big boy pants.”

ARLINGTON, VA – After a 5-3 loss to the New Jersey Devils in their home opener, the Washington Capitals will look to bounce back on Tuesday against the Vegas Golden Knights. However, Vegas will likely prove to be a formidable opponent as it enters the 2024-25 season with a record of 3-0-0.

The Golden Knights have averaged five goals in their three games, thanks largely to a strong front line from Ivan Barbashev, Jack Eichel and Mark Stone. Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery highlighted the trio's success after Tuesday's morning skate.

“(They are an) elite team,” he said. “The top line is as good as – right now it's a tiny sample size, but if you look back years – as good as, right up there with some of the top lines in the NHL, with McDavid's line, MacKinnon's line, those guys. “So (Jack) Eichel and Mark Stone and (Ivan) Barbashev gave them a big compliment and got them off to a really good start. So they will be a handful.”

The trio has scored six goals and totaled 14 points in five-on-five play so far, with Eichel and Stone combining for another four points on the power play. The bigger challenge for Washington, however, may be Vegas' stout defense. Carbery cited size and network presence as particular obstacles.

“Their D, what I find about them, is one of the main reasons I see why they're such a good defensive team: their D's are all long and big,” he said. “And it’s very, very hard to get inside against the Vegas Golden Knights. So they only control the space within the defensive zone in front of their net and in the dangerous goal area. And they make it really, really difficult, A, to get in there, B, to get pucks in there, and C, to find a second chance in there.

“And they manage to get into firing lanes well. They do a great job at boxing. And when a puck does come in, they are extremely tough with numbers, under the sticks. And usually it's a one-time situation. So that’s a recipe for success.”

Washington and Vegas split their 2023-24 season series with two one-sided games: Charlie Lindgren posted a 3-0 shutout at home in November before Vegas posted a 4-1 win a month later.

Even against weaker defensive teams, Washington's struggling offense plagued much of last season. The lack of production led to an aggressive offseason restructuring that brought in players like Pierre-Luc Dubois, Jakob Chychrun and Andrew Mangiapane in hopes of higher scoring numbers. Still, Carbery believes his team will have to choose their offensive moments wisely to beat Vegas.

“You have to be ready to go (inside). And then you need to put on your big boy pants tonight. And when we play Brayden McNabb and (Alex) Pietrangelo and (Noah) Hanifin, we have to be able to put up numbers and you have to win some pucks. You must be able to find a second chance. Or maybe it's a puck recovery and then we get it back. You have to be really smart with the pucks you get in there.

“When you throw in any half-hearted, reticent sifters in quotes, they usually go the other way. And they're just going to switch those pucks around. So you have to be very conscious of what you put into the net. That doesn't mean it has to go in. It just can't be something that you can just tear down and convert the other way. Because they're good at owning that space, and a lot of times they throw a puck in, grab it, block it with their shin pads, and it goes the other way. And your shift in the offensive zone is over.”

The Capitals' schedule doesn't get much easier after Tuesday night's game against the Golden Knights. Washington will play four of its remaining eight games in October against 2024 playoff teams, plus two more against the Philadelphia Flyers, who just edged the Capitals for a playoff spot in Game 82 of the regular season.

Washington will look to get its first win of the season when the puck drops against the Golden Knights at Capital One Arena at 7 p.m.