Devils at Capitals
In a move that would get a nod from President Donald Trump, the Washington Capitals adopted a rich-get-richer approach at the trade deadline by acquiring defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk from St. Louis on Monday. Washington steamrolled the New York Rangers in Shattenkirk's debut the following night and will open a three-game homestand against the New Jersey Devils on Thursday night.
"It was just a fun game to be out there and fun to come back in an away building, in that environment, and get a win," Shattenkirk said after the Capitals spotted the Rangers an early goal before answering with four unanswered tallies. Washington holds a three-point edge over Minnesota as it looks to post the league's best record for the second consecutive season. The Capitals have dominated the season series with a 10-game point streak (9-0-1) against the Devils dating to a 1-0 home loss on Nov. 14, 2014. New Jersey, a loser of four straight (0-2-2), is seven points out of the second wild card in the Eastern Conference but was in seller's mode at Wednesday's NHL trade deadline.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, MSG-Plus (New Jersey), CSN Mid-Atlantic (Washington)
ABOUT THE DEVILS (25-25-12): Offensively challenged New Jersey sent 13-goal scorer P.A. Parenteau to Nashville in exchange for a sixth-round draft pick while shipping veteran Kyle Quincey to Columbus in return for fellow defenseman Dalton Prout. The 26-year-old Prout is five years younger and has a bit more size than Quincey, but he has appeared in only 15 games this season, collecting three assists. Kyle Palmieri has four goals during a four-game point streak.
ABOUT THE CAPITALS (42-13-7): While Shattenkirk had four shots on goal in his Washington debut, Marcus Johansson stole the spotlight by scoring twice and setting up another tally to eclipse his previous career high with 21 goals. “It’s always fun to know that you’re kind of improving a little bit," Johansson said. "Just keep working on it, and hopefully you get some more.” Forward T.J. Oshie and defenseman Brooks Orpik practiced fully Wednesday after sitting out the previous three games.
OVERTIME
1. Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin has two goals and four assists in three games versus the Devils this season and 21 goals in 44 career games.
2. New Jersey has scored at least one power-play goal in five straight games.
3. Johansson is four points shy of matching his career high of 47 from 2014-15.