Lightning at Penguins
The Tampa Bay Lightning look to extend their winning streak to five games when they visit the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday in the third matchup between the two division leaders in 19 days. The Lightning had lost 10 straight to Pittsburgh until a 4-3 home victory Dec. 23 that started their resurgence after suffering through a 2-5-1 stretch. The Penguins snapped a four-game winless streak with a 2-1 victory over Carolina on Wednesday as goalie Marc-Andre Fleury won his 20th game.
Pittsburgh must contain the line of Ondrej Palat, Tyler Johnson and Nikita Kucherov, which combined for 10 points in the 5-1 victory at Buffalo on Wednesday to begin a four-game road trip. Penguins’ center Evgeni Malkin has gone three games without a point for the first time this season, but has torched the Lightning for 18 goals and 38 points in 29 career contests. Tampa Bay has not won at Pittsburgh since Game 7 of the first-round series in the 2011 Eastern Conference playoffs.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, TVA, Sun Sports (Tampa Bay), ROOT (Pittsburgh)
ABOUT THE LIGHTNING (24-11-4): Kucherov, in his second season in the NHL, has produced eight goals and six assists in his last 14 games and only captain Steven Stamkos (20) has more goals than the Russian (17). Johnson (11 points, eight games) is the key to the line with Kucherov and Palat, who has eight points in his last four games. Defensemen Jason Garrison could return after missing four games with an undisclosed injury and Ben Bishop, who sat out against Buffalo, is expected back in net.
ABOUT THE PENGUINS (23-9-5): Along with Malkin’s mini-slump, captain Sidney Crosby hasn’t been his normal point-a-game self while recording two goals and three assists over the last dozen contests. Chris Kunitz has helped out with four points in his last four games, but the Penguins must find their best form on the power play which has converted only once in 24 attempts the last seven games. Defenseman Paul Martin (undisclosed injury) and right wing Steve Downie (illness) are close to returning to the lineup.
OVERTIME
1. Tampa Bay D Matt Carle has a goal and two assists with seven shots on goal and a plus-2 rating during the four-game win streak.
2. Pittsburgh D Christian Ehrhoff, playing on a one-year contract, leads the team with a plus-15 rating.
3. The Lightning have a power-play goal in each of the last two games after going 0-of-21 with the man advantage the previous five contests.