“That knee, look at the left knee. The skate blade digs into the ice, and the weight of Strome is on him,” the concerned announcer said. Meanwhile, the broadcast played the painful moment when Caps’ Dylan Strome slammed into star goalie Logan Thompson. The accidental hit, cross-check, and Storme falling on top of Thompson left the goalie in bad shape. A shadow of concern and doubt immediately crept in as the Washington Capitals goaltender needed help skating off the ice. Now, coach Carbery has finally spoken.

The media asked Coach Carbery the inevitable question in a post-game presser: How bad will it get if Thompson (one of the best goalies in the playoffs till the injury) can’t play? While Logan Thompson had been a bit inconsistent leading up to the playoffs, he made some crucial saves to give the Capitals a 2-0 series lead. The fact that his replacement, Charlie Lindgren, conceded a goal in less than 15 minutes he was on the ice didn’t inspire confidence either.

Yet, despite these concerns, the Washington Capitals coach didn’t seem worried. “Next man up for us,” said the coach. While Lindgren conceded a goal, the Coach didn’t blame the goalie, who came in against a surging Habs team already in the lead. The Caps’ defense also fell apart in the closing minutes. So, Carbery is ready to give Lindgren the benefit of the doubt heading into Game 4.

“He’s done a great job. He’s a great goaltender. So yeah, there’s no concern of our group having a letdown or from our staff having a lack of confidence. We’ve got two great guys,” Spencer Carbery said about the precarious situations Washington has suddenly found themselves in. Yet, Carbery’s statement raised another question: Did his confidence in Lindgren mean Thompson wouldn’t appear in the next game?

The Washington Capitals coach didn’t have a conclusive answer to that question. “I don’t [have an update]. I’ll get an update later on today from our training staff,” the 43-year-old said during the presser. Thompson was absent from the optional practice as Lindgren and reserve goalie Clay Stevenson took the ice. So, from the looks of it, it’s not difficult to speculate that now the Capitals’ fate might just rest on the former Hab’s goaltender.

Washington Capitals’ “next man up” is raring to get going

While the reports spoke to coach Carbery, they didn’t leave the alternate goaltender alone either. Lindgren spoke about feeling bad for Logan Thompson. He explained that during the first two games, Thompson made some big saves and kept the Caps in the lead. “Tough to see Logan go down,” the NHL star said during his locker room interview. With that being said, Charlie Lindgren is ready to go.

The former Habs goaltender who played five seasons with the Montreal Canadiens echoed his coach’s words on being the “next man up,” if the team needed him on Game 4. “You get a chance to go get in the net. You want to go out and do your job,” said the Washington Capitals netminder. And while his stats aren’t as good as Logan Thompson’s this season, they’re nothing to scoff at.

The hockey star has 20 wins and 14 losses in the 39 games and a .896 SV%. However, since there’s no update about Thompson, there’s a possibility he might not have to get on the ice after all. Thankfully, the Capitals still have the series lead, and no matter which goaltender suits up for Game 4, that might act as a small relief. On the flip side, the Canadiens’ 6-3 win cost them dearly, too.

Habs netminder Sam Montembeault exited the game in the second period, and there’s no update from the Canadiens either. Montreal head coach Martin St. Louis said something similar to what Carbery told reporters. The Habs coach said he didn’t have an update on Montembeault and that the goalie was still being evaluated on Saturday. So don’t be surprised if the Washington Capitals and the Montreal Canadiens leave their star goaltenders on the bench during Game 4.