Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Get your game notes: Capitals at Penguins

Alex Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby

Washington Capitals’ Alex Ovechkin, right, and Pittsburgh Penguins’ Sidney Crosby (87) skate during the second period of the NHL Winter Classic outdoor hockey game in Pittsburgh Saturday, Jan. 1, 2011. The Capitals won 3-1. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

AP

Tonight on NBCSN, it’s the Pittsburgh Penguins hosting the Washington Capitals, starting at 8 p.m. ET. Following are some game notes, as compiled by the NHL on NBC research team:

• The Penguins enter tonight’s game having defeated the Capitals in five straight meetings. Their last loss to the Caps came over two years ago (Jan. 11, 2012), when current backup Tomas Vokoun (currently on injured reserve) outdueled Marc-Andre Fleury, 1-0. Jason Chimera scored the game’s only goal.

• The Penguins have won 12 straight home games, a streak that began exactly two months ago (Nov. 15). If they defeat the Capitals tonight at CONSOL Energy Center, the Pens will set a new franchise record, breaking their mark from last season (Feb. 22-Mar. 30, 2013). Of the NHL’s six home win streaks of 10+ games in the NHL since the beginning of the 2011-12 season, three belong to Pittsburgh.

• The NHL’s top goal-scorer Alex Ovechkin (33) and point-getter Sidney Crosby (67) will face each other for the 34th time since they joined the league in 2005-06. Here is a composite of their 33 previous head-to-head meetings, including the 2009 Eastern Conference Semifinal.

Goals | Assists | Points | Wins Ovechkin 25 21 46 12 Crosby 23 35 58 21

• The Penguins (25.2%) and Capitals (25.0%) boast the top two power plays in the NHL, and all six of the league’s players who have been on the ice for at least 29 of their teams’ power play goals represent the Pens or Caps. (Elias Sports Bureau)

Team PPG | Individual PPG (NHL rank) | Individual PPP (NHL rank)

Sidney Crosby 36 3 (T-90th) 23 (T-2nd) Alex Ovechkin 36 12 (1st) 23 (T-2nd) Nicklas Backstrom 33 3 (T-90th) 26 (1st) Troy Brouwer 32 5 (T-30th) 11 (T-54th) Chris Kunitz 32 11 (2nd) 18 (T-10th) Evgeni Malkin 29 3 (T-90th) 19 (T-7th)

• Heading into tonight’s game, injuries have cost the Penguins an NHL-high 279 man-games (51 more than 2nd-ranked Anaheim). Only seven Pens have suited up in all 47 games: forwards Sidney Crosby, Chris Kunitz, Jussi Jokinen, Brandon Sutter and Craig Adams, defenseman Matt Niskanen and goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury (who has started 37 games and backed up in 10).

• The Penguins have three of the NHL’s top four scorers, in terms of points per game average.

Games played | Points | Points/game

Sidney Crosby 47 67 1.43 Steven Stamkos 17 23 1.35 James Neal 27 36 1.33 Evgeni Malkin 36 46 1.28

• The Capitals have played past regulation in an NHL-high 18 games this season, including an NHL-high 14 shootouts. The Caps’ 10 non-regulation wins and eight shootout wins are both tied for the league lead. However, they are winless in their past five OT/SO games since their last win on Dec. 15.