Nicklas Backstrom

From the moment the puck was dropped, Capitals fans everywhere had to have been wondering if the Caps were able to bring their momentum from the 5-3 win over Ottawa back to the Verizon Center.

Following their 4-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs, it seems that the Caps do, indeed, have a good deal of momentum behind them for the first time in a while.

The good:

It's a new season, and the Caps roster looks relatively new. There isn't a Caps fan in the world who isn't excited to see what this team can do.

There are quite a lot of players on that team that have faced a lot of criticism recently, last year in particular, and those players go into the new season with everything to prove. 

Here is our pick of the top five Capitals players with things to prove in 2011/12:

The Washington Capitals defeated the New York Rangers 4-3 in double overtime on Wednesday evening and in the process took a commanding 3-1 series lead in the process. You know what it as stake and how the Caps postseason history reads.

It is indeed that time of year again. The flowers are blossoming, the temperatures are rising, and the ice is heating up. It is time for some playoff hockey and most of the match ups are set. This evening the playoff schedules will be unveiled and the true fun will begin. 

Jason Arnott's first two games with the Washington Capitals couldn't have played out any better for the 36-year-old center, as he played pivotal roles in two key victories.

First, he set up Brooks Laich's tying goal in the final minute to force overtime against the New York Islanders, then two nights later scored the game-winning tally with just minutes to play against the St. Louis Blues.

The NHL is a better place when the player’s personalities come to the surface in times of high emotion.

Whether winning or losing, when emotion shows through, the fans will care more.

It’s the players who seem indifferent that the fans seem to not associate well with. When the team should be mad at its performance, the star player should be mad as well.

A player who keeps a steady perspective on the game and doesn’t get emotional at either the highs or the lows may seem to not care to an avid fan.

It only took three days but the Jason “Arnott” headlines can begin in earnest. The Caps wesbite led with "Ready Arnott".

Newly acquired veteran center Arnott scored his 14^th goal of the season as the Washington Capitals beat the struggling St. Louis Blues 3-2,winning their third straight game in the process.

With the reported news that Nicklas Backstrom suffered a thumb fracture in Monday night's win against the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Capitals will need to examine options in order to compensate for Backstrom’s injury.

If you have been watching the Washington Capitals this season, then you know that it is all or nothing when it comes to scoring goals.

Last evening it was all offense, as the Washington Capitals overcame one two-goal and three one-goal deficits to beat the Anaheim Ducks 7-6, at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.

The game was a wild affair that saw Washington score seven goals for the first time since Oct. 30.

The Washington Capitals finally played a 60-minute game as Nicklas Backstrom and Alex Ovechkin re-appeared on the scoresheet together, four times—and just like that, the Caps' season is fun all over again.

The Capitals defeated the Southeast division-leading Tampa Bay Lightning, 5-2, and in the process snapped the Bolts' six-game winning streak. Tampa lost for just the fifth time at home this season.