Hurricanes at Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins have an opportunity to jump into second place in the Metropolitan Division, while the Carolina Hurricanes' chances of making the playoffs are fading fast. Carolina looks to make a quick recovery after suffering its first regulation loss since March 7 when it visits Pittsburgh on Sunday.
The Hurricanes' team-record 13-game point streak (9-0-4) came to a crashing halt Saturday as they suffered a 3-0 home loss to Dallas, which dropped them six points behind Boston for the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference with five games remaining. The Penguins, meanwhile, can clinch at least third place in the Metropolitan with a victory over Carolina and would move into second should Columbus fail to earn a point in its showdown with first-place Washington on Sunday. Pittsburgh, which trails the Capitals by five points with five games to play, halted its four-game slide (0-2-2) with Friday's 4-3 road shootout triumph over the New York Rangers. Penguins captain Sidney Crosby is tied for third in the league with 84 points and leads the NHL with 43 goals but has recorded only two tallies and an assist over his last five contests.
TV: 5 p.m. ET, NHL Network, FSN Carolinas, ROOT (Pittsburgh)
ABOUT THE HURRICANES (35-28-14): Eddie Lack served as Cam Ward's backup Saturday and may get the start against Pittsburgh. The 29-year-old native of Sweden has not played since Monday, when he suffered a neck strain in a collision against Detroit and was taken from the ice on a stretcher. Jeff Skinner leads Carolina with 32 goals and 57 points but has been kept off the scoresheet in two of his last three contests following a seven-game point streak during which he collected eight tallies and two assists.
ABOUT THE PENGUINS (47-19-11): Chris Kunitz did not participate in Saturday's practice and could miss the game against the Hurricanes due to a lower-body injury. The 37-year-old has recorded only nine goals in 71 contests this season and is in the midst of a 21-game drought, as he hasn't scored since Feb. 16 against Winnipeg. Josh Archibald, who recorded two goals in five games with Pittsburgh earlier this season, was recalled from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League.
OVERTIME
1. With Lack healthy again, the Hurricanes assigned fellow G Alex Nedeljkovic to Florida of the ECHL.
2. Pittsburgh is beginning its final homestand of the season - a two-gamer that concludes Tuesday against Columbus.
3. Carolina RW Lee Stempniak's next goal will be the 200th of his career.