What - Game 71 (44-20-6)
When - 7 p.m., Friday, March 22
Where - Capital One Arena; Washington, DC
How to Watch - Bally Sports South, NHL Network, Sportsnet, TVAS
The Carolina Hurricanes head to the nation's capital for their second-to-last back-to-back of the season.
After defeating the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 in overtime last night, the Canes have a quick turnaround to face another desperate Metro team in the Washington Capitals (33-26-9).
The Hurricanes are currently riding a five-game winning streak and have been getting contributions up and down the lineup. They've really been rounding into playoff form and the new additions have fit in perfectly so far.
The Capitals meanwhile are fighting for their playoff lives. They looked dead in the water a month or so ago, but they've started to crawl their way back due to the incompetency of the other Eastern Wild Card teams.
They're coming off of a 7-3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs but had won three in a row before that. Alex Ovechkin is also starting to pick up his scoring pace after an unusually slow start to the season.
Streaks
- Seth Jarvis (6g) has scored in five straight games.
- Sebastian Aho (2g, 6a) has points in four straight games.
- Martin Necas (1g, 2a) has points in three straight games.
Milestone Watch
- Brady Skjei will play in career game 600 tonight.
- Sebastian Aho is one assist shy of 300 career assists.
- Brent Burns is two points shy of 100 points as a Carolina Hurricane.
- Dmitry Orlov is two points shy of 300 career points.
- Brett Pesce is two points shy of 200 career points.
Game Notes
- Carolina is 1-0-1 against the Capitals this season with a 2-1 shootout loss on Dec. 17 and a 6-2 win on Jan. 5.
- Evgeny Kuznetsov will play in his first game in Washington since being traded at the deadline.
Key Matchups
Starting Goalies
- Pyotr Kochetkov: 19-12-3; 0.913 Sv%; 2.36 GAA
- Darcy Kuemper: 13-13-3; 0.890 Sv%; 3.29 GAA
Leading Scorers
- Goals - Sebastian Aho (27) / Alex Ovechkin & Dylan Strome (23)
- Points - Sebastian Aho (76) / Alex Ovechkin & Dylan Strome (54)
Power Play
- Carolina - 26.2% (4th)
- Washington - 20.2% (18th)
Penalty Kill
- Carolina - 86% (2nd)
- Washington - 79.4% (16th)
Hurricanes Projected Lineup
Jake Guentzel - Sebastian Aho - Seth Jarvis
Andrei Svechnikov - Evgeny Kuznetsov - Martin Necas
Jordan Martinook - Jordan Staal - Stefan Noesen
Brendan Lemieux - Jesperi Kotkaniemi
Jaccob Slavin - Brent Burns
Brady Skjei - Brett Pesce
Dmitry Orlov - Jalen Chatfield
Tony DeAngelo
Pyotr Kochetkov
Frederik Andersen
Injuries and Scratches: Spencer Martin, Jack Drury (LBI), Teuvo Teravainen (UBI), Jesper Fast (undisclosed)
Capitals Projected Lineup
Alex Ovechkin - Connor McMichael - Michael Sgarbossa
Ivan Miroshnichenko - Dylan Strome - Sonny Milano
Max Pacioretty - Hendrix Lapierre - Nicolas Aube-Kubel
Beck Malenstyn - Nic Dowd - Matthew Phillips
Martin Fehervary - John Carlson
Rasmus Sandin - Nick Jensen
Alexander Alexeyev - Trevor van Riemsdyk
Charlie Lindgren
Darcy Kuemper
Injuries and Scratches: Ethan Bear, Nicklas Backstrom (hip), T.J. Oshie (UBI), Aliaksei Protas (UBI), Tom Wilson (suspension)