Caps close preseason 5-1 at Philly — opener Oct. 2 at Carolina

Final — Washington Capitals 5, Philadelphia Flyers 1

The Capitals closed the 2026 preseason with a 5-1 win at Xfinity Mobile Arena on Saturday, Sep. 26 — a statement road night for a youth-heavy group before the real games start (Flyers.com).

Philadelphia struck first through Jamie Drysdale early in the second. Washington answered in waves: Andrew Cristall tied it, Maxim Schaefer put the Caps ahead, Ethan Frank scored on the power play for 3-1, Theodor Niederbach made it 4-1 early in the third, and Lyndon Lakovic added late insurance.

Charlie Lindgren starred early in net for Washington before Calvin Pickard finished (Flyers.com). Philadelphia finished preseason 1-3-0. Exhibition hockey is not October hockey — but depth pieces scoring in bunches is the kind of tape the staff wants before cuts harden into the opening-night group. A 5-1 road close also gives Carbery clean film on who earned a longer look when Carolina starts the real clock.

Locked scoring (Flyers recap)

• Jamie Drysdale — Flyers 1-0 early second
• Andrew Cristall — Caps equalizer
• Maxim Schaefer — Caps go-ahead
• Ethan Frank — power-play goal (3-1)
• Theodor Niederbach — early third (4-1)
• Lyndon Lakovic — late insurance

Regular season next

| Date | Opponent | Time (ET) |

| --- | --- | --- |

| Fri. Oct. 2 | at Carolina | 7:00 p.m. |

| Sat. Oct. 3 | at Tampa Bay | 7:00 p.m. |

| Wed. Oct. 7 | vs Pittsburgh (home opener) | 7:30 p.m. |

Confirm TV on the club board.

Sport DMV read

Preseason is closed; the DMV clock flips to Carolina on Friday and a road back-to-back into Tampa. Watch the opening-night lineup decisions land before that Hurricanes puck drop — the youth who finished strong here want minutes when the standings start counting.

The Capitals page is the hub.

*Sunday evening desk, Sep. 27, 2026. Analysis refresh. Score from Flyers.com; opener from Capitals.com schedule release.*