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NHL on NBCSN: Caps aim for season series sweep vs. Pens

Washington Capitals v Pittsburgh Penguins

Washington Capitals v Pittsburgh Penguins

Gregory Shamus

NBCSN will continue its coverage of the 2014-15 campaign as Washington Capitals host the Pittsburgh Penguins at the Verizon Center at 8:00 p.m. ET. In addition to NBCSN, you can also watch the game and pre-show online.

As far as the Penguins - Capitals rivalry goes, it seemed like Pittsburgh had the upper hand for a significant stretch of time, but now Washington is in charge.

If the Capitals win in regulation on “Rivalry Night” tonight, they’ll take all eight possible standings points from this season series, while Pittsburgh would end up with nothing.

Here’s a quick look at the previous three games in this season series:

Feb. 17: Washington 3, Pittsburgh 1
Jan. 28: Washington 4, Pittsburgh 0
Dec. 27: Washington 3, Pittsburgh 0

Yikes, that’s a 10-1 total score, too.

As much as these games are about Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin vs. Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom, Braden Holtby’s been the clear story in 2014-15, as Pittsburgh’s only managed to score once against him in three games.

This game means more than a series sweep, though.

If Washington manages to win in regulation, they’d push Pittsburgh into the wild card and take the third spot in the Metropolitan Division.

Seeding is very much up for grabs at this point in the season, really.

As an added bonus, both teams seem to come into this game with solid momentum. The Penguins have won two games in a row by a combined score of 9-3 while Washington just saw a four-game winning streak end on Sunday.

This rivalry will probably be worth watching until its biggest stars fade, but even with that in mind, the significant playoff implications should make Wednesday’s game that much more entertaining.

Follow James O’Brien @cyclelikesedins