The Capitals have no other choice, trailing the Carolina Hurricanes 3-1 in the Eastern Conference Second Round heading into Game 5 of the best-of-7 series at Capital One Arena on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; MAX, truTV, TNT, SN, TVAS). After losing the past two games on the road, Washington returns home with its season on the brink of elimination.

The Washington Capitals head into Thursday's Game 5 matchup with the visiting Carolina Hurricanes knowing they must win the next three games to keep their second-round series going and advance to the NHL's Eastern Conference final.

The Washington Capitals face the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 3 of the second-round of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs on Saturday, May 10, 2025. The game will be broadcast at 6 p.m. ET on TNT/truTV. If you don’t have cable, here’s how you can watch the game.

According to NHL EDGE Stats, the Capitals have not scored on a high-danger shot on goal in the series, going 0-for-24. The Hurricanes have goals on four of their 24 high-danger shots, including on two of five in Game 4 (one was Andrei Svechnikov's empty-net goal).

The Capitals are staring down elimination in Game 5. Here's what would help them start to dig out from the 3-1 hole.

The Washington Capitals' storybook season is on the line, and on Thursday, they'll have to pull off a win against the high-flying Carolina Hurricanes in Game 5 to stave off elimination.

The Carolina Hurricanes twice found their two-goal margin halved in the third period of their latest playoff game with the Washington Capitals. Each time they found a prompt response.