Capitals at Devils
Two teams in quest of a postseason berth in the Eastern Conference lock horns Friday as the Washington Capitals visit the Metropolitan Division-rival New Jersey Devils. Both clubs enter the matchup out of a playoff spot, with Washington four points behind Columbus for the second wild card in the East and New Jersey trailing the Blue Jackets by five. The teams also respectively sit six and seven points back of Philadelphia for third place in the division.
The Capitals suffered their fourth straight loss and fifth in six games Tuesday, when they were blanked 5-0 by Kari Lehtonen and Dallas. The Devils are coming off their third shootout loss in four contests, a 3-2 setback at Buffalo on Tuesday. New Jersey won the first two meetings before being shut out by Braden Holtby 3-0 on Feb. 8 in Washington.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, NBCSN, CSN Plus (Washington)
ABOUT THE CAPITALS (34-29-13): Alex Ovechkin's lead in his attempt at a fourth Maurice Richard Trophy is down to seven goals as Anaheim's Corey Perry - the 2011 winner - tallied twice on Wednesday to raise his total to 41. Ovechkin - who has scored only four times in his last 13 games - has not tallied at even strength since Feb. 27 at Florida, netting seven power-play goals in the meantime. The captain also owns a dubious mark as he enters Friday with a league-worst minus-36 rating.
ABOUT THE DEVILS (32-28-16): New Jersey must avoid the shootout if it hopes to post victories, as it has lost 15 straight trips to the bonus format - including all 11 this season. The club has converted just 3-of-39 attempts, with two coming in Tuesday's setback. Rookie defenseman Jon Merrill practiced with a full cage on his helmet Thursday and could be in the lineup against Washington after missing two games with facial injuries.
OVERTIME
1. Ovechkin has posted better than an even plus/minus rating only once in his last 22 games.
2. Only one of the Devils' final five games is against a team occupying a playoff spot. They host conference champion Boston in the season finale.
3. Peter DeBoer's next victory will be his 100th as New Jersey's coach.