Capitals at Hurricanes
Although their overall winning streak is over, the Carolina Hurricanes hope to continue their run at home when they face off against the Washington Capitals on Tuesday. Carolina had captured four straight before dropping a 3-2 decision at St. Louis on Saturday but seeks its seventh victory in a row at PNC Arena when it hosts Washington.
The Hurricanes won all five of their home games in December and have not lost in their own building since being edged 5-4 on Nov. 24 by Toronto. Washington appears to have bounced back from a three-game slide that included a pair of shutout losses as it is coming off back-to-back home wins over Boston and New Jersey. The Capitals recorded a total of eight goals in the triumphs after amassing only two during the 0-1-2 skid. Captain Alex Ovechkin collected three assists in Saturday's 5-2 victory over the Devils and is among the league leaders with 24 goals.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, NBCSN Washington, FSN Carolinas
ABOUT THE CAPITALS (24-13-3): Barry Trotz passed Lindy Ruff to become the fifth-winningest coach in NHL history with Saturday's triumph, which raised his career total to 737. Next on Trotz's radar is Al Arbour, who recorded 782 victories during his Hall-of-Fame coaching career. Nicklas Backstrom recorded a goal and two assists versus New Jersey to end his four-game point drought.
ABOUT THE HURRICANES (18-13-7): Lucas Wallmark made his season debut Saturday and scored the first goal of his NHL career. The 22-year-old Swedish center, who was a fourth-round pick in the 2014 draft, notched a pair of assists in eight games last campaign - his first in the league. Jeff Skinner leads Carolina with 12 goals but has recorded just one in his last 11 contests.
OVERTIME
1. Ovechkin's next game will be his 962nd, moving him past Peter Bondra for second place in franchise history and putting him 21 behind Calle Johansson for the top spot.
2. Carolina C Marcus Kruger is day-to-day with a lower-body injury.
3. Washington C Lars Eller is two points shy of 200 for his career.