BUFFALO, N.Y. -- After one of their worst -- and most surprising -- losses of the season, the Washington Capitals will have a good chance at ending their road trip on a high note Monday when they take on the struggling Buffalo Sabres.

The Capitals (33-18-8) were stunned Saturday in a 7-1 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks, who snapped an eight-game losing streak.

Consistency has been an issue for the Capitals lately. Despite Washington's solid record and playoff positioning -- second in the Metropolitan Division, it has largely rotated wins and losses during the past month.

"We haven't been as consistent as we need to be, but at the same time we've been more consistent than a lot of teams or we wouldn't be where we are," Capitals coach Barry Trotz said, according to the team's website. "We've got to look at that. We've got a lot of inconsistencies. It's a tough game, it's a humbling game, and we got humbled (against Chicago)."

"Inconsistency is a good word," Capitals defenseman Brooks Orpik said, according to the team's website. "I'm not really sure why. It definitely seems like once we straighten some things out, we kind of take two steps back and making the same mistakes and digging the same hole. That and any time you give up the first goal, chasing the game in this league is a tough way to play."

Before the blowout loss to Chicago, Washington picked up a 5-2 win over the Minnesota Wild. Before that were back-to-back overtime losses, which came after back-to-back wins. Again, before those back-to-back wins, more back-to-back losses against Pittsburgh and Vegas.

"As a coach, you want a response from your group," Trotz said, according to the team's website. "That tells you a lot about your group. We have had a response a couple of times this year when we haven't had our best game, and I expect the same thing on the next game.

"We've gotten points in our last five games other than (the Chicago) game so we can't be that bad and I know we aren't as bad as we were."

Issues remain for the Sabres (17-31-11), who have lost two in a row and six of nine games in February. Buffalo is without top playmaker Jack Eichel because of a high ankle sprain and fell behind 4-0 in Saturday's loss to the Los Angeles Kings. The Sabres scored two goals after the game was out of reach.

"Passion and emotion is a great tool," Sabres coach Phil Housley said, according to the team's website. "We have to have more emotion. I think we need to play with more passion.

"I thought we had a really good game against Washington last time we played them here. We're going to try to use some of those examples, why we played the way we did, and we have to prepare that way. I just think we have to control what we can control."