The team attributed Alzner’s absence to taking a “maintenance day,” and if Alzner doesn’t play in Game 3 between the Capitals and Maple Leafs, it will be his first game missed in seven years. “He’s had a maintenance day; they just asked if he could be off today.”Alzner owns the franchise record for consecutive games played with 540 consecutive regular-season games, and he’s also played in 59 straight playoff games. Though Alzner didn’t miss a game during the regular season, the recovery from groin injuries is arduous, and it has occasionally hindered Alzner. If Alzner can’t play, Nate Schmidt will be in the lineup on a pairing with John Carlson. Schmidt played sporadically down the stretch after Shattenkirk’s arrival, but in those seven relief appearances, his teammates were impressed.

Source: Washington Post April 17, 2017 17:53 UTC