Capitals at Blue Jackets
The Columbus Blue Jackets vie for their franchise record-tying eighth consecutive victory when they open a season-high five-game homestand against the Metropolitan Division-rival Washington Capitals on Thursday. Sergei Bobrovsky has been in net during every contest of the winning streak, including a 30-save performance to record his first shutout of the season in a 1-0 triumph over Detroit on Tuesday. The 2013 Vezina Trophy winner turned aside 39 shots - including a staggering nine by Alex Ovechkin - as Columbus skated to a 3-2 overtime victory last Thursday.
Ovechkin did score twice in the Capitals' 4-2 win over the Blue Jackets on Nov. 11 and has 10 goals and an assist in 14 career meetings, although he was held off the scoresheet last week versus Columbus. Washington's captain did notch his third assist in two games on Tuesday, but the club fell on the wrong end of NHL history when it dropped a 20-round shootout to Florida. "It definitely wasn't fun to be a part of it," said goaltender Braden Holtby, who made his 13th consecutive start.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, CSN DC (Washington), FSN Ohio (Columbus)
ABOUT THE CAPITALS (14-10-6): Troy Brouwer scored a power-play goal on Tuesday and has tallied three times in his last four games after finding the net just once in the previous 12. The 29-year-old's four power-play goals are second on the team only to the six by Ovechkin, while Nicklas Backstrom leads the club with 13 assists with the man advantage. Washington, which is clicking at a league-best 27.1-percent clip on the power play, is 4-for-16 over its last five contests.
ABOUT THE BLUE JACKETS (13-5-2): Nick Foligno scored his second goal of the game 4:41 into overtime last week versus the Capitals and needs just one more tally to reach 100 for his career. Foligno leads the club in goals (14) and shares top honors in points (27) with Ryan Johansen. The 22-year-old Johansen has hit the ground running after settling his contract dispute, although he has been held off the scoresheet in five of his last seven games.
OVERTIME
1. Bobrovsky owns a stellar .950 save percentage and 1.71 goals-against average during Columbus' winning streak.
2. Washington is 13-for-14 on the penalty kill in its last five games.
3. The Blue Jackets recorded an eight-game winning streak last season (Jan. 6-23).