Capitals at Stars
The Washington Capitals are starting to run away and hide for the best record in the NHL and will carry a five-game winning streak into Saturday night's marquee matchup at the Dallas Stars. Led by superstar captain Alex Ovechkin, the surging Capitals own an eight-point edge over the Chicago Blackhawks atop the league standings entering the finale of a three-game road trip.
The fastest team to reach 40 wins in league history, Washington faces a daunting challenge against the Stars in a showdown of the top two scoring teams in the NHL. Ovechkin registered a hat trick in Thursday's 4-3 victory at Minnesota to take over the league's goal-scoring lead from Patrick Kane with 34 tallies. Dallas won has won five of six following a 4-2 victory at Chicago on Thursday night to pull within one point of the Western Conference-leading Blackhawks with three games in hand. The Stars won the first meeting this season, squeezing out a 3-2 victory at Washington on Nov. 19.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, CSN Washington, FSN Southwest (Dallas)
ABOUT THE CAPITALS (40-9-4): Ovechkin's first hat trick since December 2013 gave him 13 goals in his last 13 games and lifted him past Jean Beliveau into sole possession of 39th place on the career list with 509 tallies. "It's incredible. The puck just comes to him," said linemate Nicklas Backstrom, who assisted on all three of Ovechkin's goals. "But he has that ability, when it comes, to put it in the net. It's hard to do." It's equally hard to beat Capitals netminder Braden Holtby, who is 7-0-1 in his last eight games and owns a league-best 35 wins.
ABOUT THE STARS (35-15-5): Ovechkin's hat trick was matched by an unlikely source as Dallas' Patrick Eaves became the 10th player in franchise history to tally three goals in one period in Tuesday's win. Playing on the top line with 28-goal scorers Tyler Seguin and captain Jamie Benn, Eaves has four goals and three assists in the past four games after notching three goals and an assist in his first 31 contests. “He is really shooting them right now," Seguin said. "He’s got a quick release, and when you find those open spots good things are going to happen. He’s dialed in right now.”
OVERTIME
1. Stars G Kari Lehtonen has turned aside 81-of-86 shots in back-to-back starts.
2. Ovechkin has six goals in 11 games versus Dallas.
3. Stars F Travis Moen (lower body) will be sidelined for a short time but D Jason Demers is expected to return to the lineup.