Capitals' Holtby 'guessing' dehydration caused vision loss vs. Rangers

Prior to his expected start against the Columbus Blue Jackets, Washington Capitals goalie Braden Holtby took some time Tuesday to discuss the migraine that forced him to leave his game against the New York Rangers on Sunday.

"We're just guessing that it was dehydration the last game," Holtby said, per Isabelle Khurshudyan of The Washington Post. "We don't really know. It could've just been tweaking your neck and causing a migraine somehow or a little bump in the head or whatever.

"You never really know the cause of it, but it was just a migraine where vision was impaired for a while. It came back. … It's a little hard to play goal when you can't see."

The issue of dehydration is not new to Holtby, as he explained he drinks "16 to 17 litres of liquid" on a normal game day and that he and Mark Nemish, the Capitals' strength and conditioning coach, are working with Gatorade to find new solutions for the hydration issues.

He was also forced to leave a practice in December due to cramps caused from dehydration, but did not miss any game action.

Regardless, the 26-year-old was still credited with the win Sunday as backup Phillipp Grubauer stopped all 11 shots he faced as the Capitals picked up a 5-2 victory, but the team will certainly be happier having the NHL wins leader back on the ice so soon.