Capitals’ Nic Dowd out day-to-day with upper-body injury
A notable veteran asset down the middle is going to miss another game.
When speaking to the media, Washington Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery revealed that forward Nic Dowd will not be in the lineup when the team hosts the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday night and is out day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
Nic Dowd (upper-body) is day-to-day and will not play tonight, per Spencer Carbery. Said him skating today was a good sign.
— Katie Adler (@katieEadler) November 22, 2025It hasn’t been disclosed when exactly Dowd was hurt. However, there’s some optimism, as Dowd was seen on the ice during morning skate on Thursday.
It will mark the third game in a row where Dowd has been absent. The 35-year-old missed Wednesday’s matchup with the Edmonton Oilers and Thursday night’s clash against the Montreal Canadiens. Despite him missing the contests, Washington was just fine, beating up the Oilers 7-4, before pulling away in Montreal, grabbing an 8-4 victory, giving the Capitals three wins in a row.
Dowd was last in game action this past Monday, when Washington snagged a 2-1 victory over the Los Angeles Kings. The Huntsville, Ala. native seemed no worse for wear during the game, registering 19:21 of ice time across 23 shifts.
Dowd had appeared in each of the Caps’ first 19 games of the season. He had scored a goal and four assists for five points, a little behind the pace of the performance from last season, in which the center posted career highs in goals (14) and points (27). He has a plus/minus of +2 while averaging 15:08 of ice time.
He entered the 2025-26 season fresh off signing a two-year contract extension last April. The new deal has an AAV of $3 million through the 2026-27 season.
After Saturday’s matchup against the Bolts, the Capitals (11-8-2) are scheduled to take on the Columbus Blue Jackets.