Capitals at Canadiens
Alex Ovechkin's goal-scoring surge has the Washington Capitals on the cusp of moving into second place in the Metropolitan Division. After netting his third tally in two contests to reach the 50-goal plateau for the sixth time in his career, Ovechkin looks to continue his hot hand as the Capitals vie for their third straight win when they visit the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.
The three-time Hart Trophy winner added an assist as Washington skated to a 4-2 victory over Carolina on Tuesday for its sixth win in eight games. Ovechkin hasn't been nearly as effective in the first two meetings with Montreal, as he has been held without a point in the Capitals' 2-1 shootout setback on Oct. 9 and 1-0 overtime loss on Jan. 31. While Washington owns the top wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference and resides one point behind the second-place New York Islanders in the Metropolitan, the Canadiens are clinging to a one-point lead over second-place Tampa Bay in the Atlantic after dropping a 5-3 decision to the Lightning on Monday. Montreal lost all five games this season to Tampa Bay but could sweep Washington for the first time since 1990-91.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, CSN-DC (Washington), RDS, RSN East (Montreal)
ABOUT THE CAPITALS (42-25-10): Rookie Evgeny Kuznetsov, who had the primary assist on Ovechkin's milestone goal, set up a pair of tallies versus the Hurricanes to increase his point total to nine in his last 10 games. Defenseman Matt Niskanen has collected five assists during his four-game point streak and eight in his last seven contests overall. "It's a real big trip for us," coach Barry Trotz said of the three-game stretch that includes stops in Ottawa and Detroit. "Everything's in our hands and we've got to go out and play well, that's plain and simple."
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (47-22-8): Max Pacioretty is giving the Bell Centre faithful plenty about which to cheer, collecting seven goals and five assists in his last nine home games. The Connecticut native, who leads the team with 37 tallies, scored in overtime for the lone goal of the contest in the last meeting with Washington. Carey Price stopped all 36 shots he faced in that contest but only has won 5-of-17 career meetings (5-9-3, 3.04 goals-against average) with the Capitals.
OVERTIME
1. Washington has killed off all 14 short-handed situations over its last five games.
2. Montreal is 3-for-7 on the power play over the last two contests after failing on all nine opportunities in its previous five games.
3. Ovechkin's tally on Tuesday was the 472nd of his career, tying Peter Bondra for the franchise record.