Capitals at Penguins
Less than 24 hours after setting a franchise record by qualifying for the playoffs for the 12th straight season, the Pittsburgh Penguins attempt to climb within one point of the top spot in the Metropolitan Division when they host the first-place Washington Capitals on Sunday. Pittsburgh, which made the postseason 11 consecutive times from 1991-2001, punched its ticket for this year's tournament with Saturday's 5-2 home triumph over Montreal.
Phil Kessel and Riley Sheahan each recorded a goal and an assist for the two-time defending Stanley Cup-champion Penguins, who are 29-8-2 at home - including a 6-0-1 mark in their last seven - and have only three games remaining. Kessel is second on the team with a career-high 87 points - eight behind leader Evgeni Malkin, who notched a pair of assists against the Canadiens. Washington, which has four contests left, had its season high-matching five-game winning streak halted Friday as it dropped a 4-1 home decision to Carolina. Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin, who leads the league with 45 goals but has produced just one in his last five contests, is expected to skate in his 1,000th NHL game on Sunday.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network
ABOUT THE CAPITALS (46-25-7): Ovechkin, who is seeking his seventh Maurice Richard Trophy, needs five tallies over his final four games to reach the 50-goal plateau for the fourth time in five seasons and eighth time overall in his career. The 32-year-old Russian is not the only member of the team on the verge of reaching a milestone for games played, as goaltender Philipp Grubauer and defenseman Michal Kempny will hit the 100-game mark the next time they suit up. The 27-year-old Kempny, who was acquired from Chicago on Feb. 19, scored on Friday for his first point in 18 contests with Washington.
ABOUT THE PENGUINS (45-28-6): Patric Hornqvist recorded his 200th career goal Saturday to extend his point streak to four games. The 31-year-old Swede, who has collected three goals and two assists during the run and scored in seven of his last 11 contests, is four tallies shy of the career high of 30 he set in 2009-10 with Nashville. Defenseman Kris Letang also is riding a four-game point streak during which he has notched two goals and three assists while captain Sidney Crosby - whose five-game goal-scoring streak came to an end Saturday - set up a tally against Montreal to extend his run to six contests (five goals, four assists).
OVERTIME
1. Penguins D Olli Maatta's next appearance will be his 300th in the NHL.
2. Washington RW T.J. Oshie extended his point streak to four games with an assist on Saturday before leaving the contest with a lower-body injury.
3. Pittsburgh G Matt Murray has gone a career-high 10 straight home games without a regulation loss (9-0-1).