Penguins at Hurricanes
Five losses in their last six games (1-4-1) have the Pittsburgh Penguins sputtering in the latter stages of the regular season. The Penguins can right the ship and sail in the right direction when they visit the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday. Pittsburgh won two of the first three meetings between the Metropolitan Division rivals this season and 10 of the last 13 overall - including five of six in Raleigh, N.C.
Chris Kunitz has collected two goals and two assists versus the Hurricanes this season but has tallied just once in his last 24 games overall. The Penguins' offense as a whole has been sluggish at best, mustering just seven goals in the last six contests as the team remains two points behind the second-place New York Islanders in the Metropolitan. Carolina, which officially has been eliminated from postseason consideration, has dropped four in a row (0-2-2) and is 2-6-3 since the trade deadline.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, ROOT (Pittsburgh), FSN Carolinas
ABOUT THE PENGUINS (40-22-11): Pittsburgh traveled to the Tar Heel State without Evgeni Malkin and Patric Hornqvist, although coach Mike Johnston is optimistic the duo will return for this weekend's back-to-back tilts versus Arizona and San Jose. Malkin has missed five straight games with a lower-body injury and Hornqvist sat out his fourth in a row due to an undisclosed ailment. Defenseman Christian Ehrhoff also has been ruled out against Carolina after playing just two shifts in a 3-2 shootout loss to St. Louis on Tuesday.
ABOUT THE HURRICANES (26-36-10): Although playing in his third season with Carolina, Jordan Staal admitted he has no issue getting up to face his former team. "I'm not going to get over it. It will always be different," Staal told the Raleigh News & Observer. "It's going to be fun and a big game for us, as well." Coach Bill Peters declared Cam Ward the starter for Thursday's contest after the veteran goaltender sat out five games with the flu.
OVERTIME
1. Pittsburgh G Marc-Andre Fleury, who made 32 saves against the Blues, owns a 13-8-2 career record versus Carolina.
2. The Hurricanes went 4-for-12 on the power play in the series, while the Penguins have failed on all seven opportunities with the man advantage.
3. With a win on Thursday, Pittsburgh would reach 20 road victories for the eighth consecutive season - the longest active streak in the NHL.