The Washington Capitals return to play on Wednesday night after a nearly three-week break for the 2026 Winter Olympics.<\/p>\n
Before they take the ice against the Philadelphia Flyers, the team will need to make a roster move of some sort. Connor McMichael<\/a>, placed on injured reserve ahead of the break<\/a>, is ready to play against the Flyers, and the Capitals are currently carrying a full complement of 23 active players on their roster.<\/p>\n The team did not waive anyone on Tuesday afternoon, so it appears they will activate McMichael through one of two remaining ways. They can either place veteran defenseman John Carlson<\/a> on injured reserve if he\u2019s not ready to play<\/a> or utilize a newly introduced rule from the NHL that says returning Canadian Olympians Tom Wilson<\/a> and Logan Thompson<\/a> can be designated as non-roster players for their first game back if they do not dress.<\/p>\n \u201cThe league has allowed [teams] to non-roster players that were in the Gold Medal Game,\u201d Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery said Tuesday. \u201cI believe they came out with that yesterday. So, there\u2019s a lot of teams, like obviously with the U.S. traveling around a little bit, there\u2019s some teams that are having to non-roster, so it doesn\u2019t count as a roster spot.\u201d<\/p>\n Wilson and Thompson arrived back in the United States on Monday<\/a> and had their CBA-required day off on Tuesday. Wilson not being able to play against the Flyers wouldn\u2019t factor in as much as Thompson, because the Capitals would need to recall a goalie from the AHL\u2019s Hershey Bears if Thompson is unable to at least back up Charlie Lindgren<\/a>.<\/p>\n If both players don\u2019t play, the Capitals could freely activate McMichael and postpone making a further decision for at least one more day. However, the Caps are likely going to need to send someone down in the near future, and Bears head coach Derek King recently commented on that impending move.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m trying to just work with what I have here,\u201d King said Saturday per RMNB\u2019s Ian Oland. \u201cObviously, any help we could get right now is going to be\u2026 we\u2019ll take it. But what we have here is a young group, a couple of vets. And, you know, I think they work hard enough to win games. It\u2019s just we\u2019ve got to work a little smarter.\u201d<\/p>\n Given how Carbery has handled playing time and healthy scratches, the most likely candidates for that move are forwards Sonny Milano<\/a> and Hendrix Lapierre<\/a>. Both would need to clear waivers to make it to Hershey. The only waivers-exempt player currently on the team\u2019s roster is winger Ryan Leonard<\/a>, and he has already become a staple in the club\u2019s lineup during his rookie campaign.<\/p>\n