Capitals at Blues
A six-game goal drought hardly is cause for alarm for most NHL players, but Alex Ovechkin's current fruitless stretch is his longest since he failed to score in six straight contests from Nov. 10-20, 2017. The three-time Hart Trophy recipient looks to end his current power outage and make some history on Thursday as the Washington Capitals open a three-game road trip against the St. Louis Blues at Enterprise Center.
Ovechkin's next tally will link the 33-year-old Russian alongside Hockey Hall of Famer Mike Gartner as the lone players to start their NHL careers with 14 consecutive 30-goal seasons. Fellow center Jakub Vrana scored his sixth goal in his last 12 outings to double his season total in Monday's 6-3 setback to Nashville, a result that gave Washington its first loss in five outings and fourth in 20 games. St. Louis had won five of seven before mustering just one goal in back-to-back setbacks to Pittsburgh and the New York Rangers to conclude the 2018 calendar year. All-Star Ryan O'Reilly, who leads the team in goals (15), assists (20) and points (35), extended his point streak to three games (two goals, one assist) by scoring midway into the first period of Monday's 2-1 setback versus the Rangers.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, NBCS Washington, Sportsnet 360, Sportsnet East, FS Midwest (St. Louis)
ABOUT THE CAPITALS (24-11-3): Ovechkin made news on Wednesday by announcing that he would sit out the upcoming All-Star Game and accept a league-mandated one-game suspension despite being voted as the captain of the Metropolitan Division team. "First of all, thanks for all the fans who voted for me," Ovechkin said. "I know it's a tough decision, obviously. I like to be part of all the events, but right now I think that time of the year and my age we decide to take a one-week break. It's hard but it's better for me, I think, at this point." Nicklas Backstrom has set up 10 goals in nine games to raise his team-leading assist total to 34 while Chandler Stephenson has scored three times in his last five contests to give him five on the season, one shy of his total from his rookie campaign in 2017-18.
ABOUT THE BLUES (15-18-4): O'Reilly has lamented the offensive struggles of St. Louis, which has scored twice on 153 shot attempts over the last two games overall while seeing its 17th-ranked power play convert just three times on 32 attempts last month. "It (stinks)," the 27-year-old O'Reilly said. "You've got to put the puck in the net, especially the power play too. We've got to find a way to bury something." Fellow forward David Perron, who set up the one-timer by O'Reilly on Monday, has two goals and four assists during his four-game point streak.
OVERTIME
1. St. Louis LWs Vladimir Tarasenko (seven goals, one assist) and Jaden Schwartz (two goals, six assists) each have eight points in their last seven games versus Washington.
2. Capitals G Braden Holtby and D John Carlson were named to the All-Star Game on Wednesday.
3. St. Louis G Jake Allen has allowed 13 goals in his last six outings, but only has a 3-3-0 mark to show for it.