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Monday, 21 February 2011 11:01

Written by Seth Rorabaugh

A preview of the Capitals.

When and where: 7:30 p.m. Consol Energy Center.

TV: Versus, TSN2, RDS.

Record: 31-19-10, 72 points. The Capitals are in fifth place in the Eastern Conference and second place in the Southeast Division.

Leading Scorer: Alex Ovechkin (right), 61 points (23 goals, 68 assists).

Last Game: 2-1 road win against the Sabres, yesterday. Mathieu Perreault had a goal and an assist for the Capitals

Last Game against the Penguins: 3-0 home win, Feb. 6. Marc-Andre Fleury made 21 saves in the victory.

Capitals Player We Would Bet Money On Scoring: Mike Knuble. He has scored in 12 consecutive regular season games against the Penguins.

Ex-Penguins on the Capitals: Matt Bradley, LW.

Ex-Capitals on the Penguins: Matt Cooke, LW; Brent Johnson, G.

Useless Capitals Trivia Vaguely Related to the Penguins: Former Penguins defenseman Larry Murphy holds the Capitals' postseason record for the fastest goals. He netted two goals in the span of 16 seconds in a 4-3 win against the Islanders in Game 1 of a Patrick Division semifinal series.

Best Capitals Video We Could Find: Former Capitals forward Dale Hunter beating Flyers goaltender Ron Hextall in overtime of Game 7 of a Patrick Division Semifinal series:

Probable goaltenders: Dan Bylsma would not say if Marc Andre Fleury (27-14-3, 2.28 GAA, .921 SV%) or Brent Johnson (9-5-2, 2.27 GAA, .917 SV%) would play for the Penguins. and Michal Neuvirth (17-9-4, 2.53 SV%, .910 SV%) for the Capitals.

Injuries: For the Penguins, forward Nick Johnson ("upper body") is doubtful. Forwards Arron Asham (concussion), Mike Comrie (hip), Sidney Crosby (concussion), Dustin Jeffrey (leg), Chris Kunitz ("lower body"), Mark Letestu (knee), Evgeni Malkin (knee) and Eric Tangradi (concussion) are on injured reserve. For the Capitals, defenseman Mike Green (ear) is day to day. Forward Eric Fehr (shoulder) and defenseman Tom Poti ("lower-body") are on injured reserve.

Potential lines and defensive pairings: The Penguins' primary lines against the Blackhawks yesterday were:

Brett Sterling - Jordan Staal - Pascal Dupuis
Matt Cooke - Craig Adams - Tyler Kennedy
Mike Rupp - Maxime Talbot - Chris Conner
Ryan Craig - Joe Vitale - Tim Wallace

Brooks Orpik - Kris Letang
Paul Martin - Zbynek Michalek
Alex Goligoski - Deryk Engelland

-The Capitals' primary lines and defensive pairings against the Sabres yesterday were:

Karl Alzner - John Carlson
Nick Schultz - Scott Hannan
John Erskine - Tyler Sloan

Notes:

-Eric Godard is serving a suspension. 

-Bylsma expect Staal to play after he took a puck to the face in overtime yesterday. 

-The Penguins will have an optional morning skate today (PG+).

-Michalek has 98 career assists.

-Quirky Stat of the Day: Assuming he plays tonight, Brooks Orpik will pass former Capitals defenseman Lee Norwood  for most NHL regular season games played (504) by a California-born player.

-Ovechkin has 298 career assists.

-Our live blog begins at approximately 6:30 p.m. Please tune in. 

(Photo: Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Comments (6)

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written by eman41, February 21, 2011 - 10:08 AM

Only 5 points separate the Pens and Caps. Last meeting of the year. This is a huge game to have this many injuries...it's also the second of a back-to-back.

Time for BJ to stand tall if he gets the nod.

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written by Bones, February 21, 2011 - 10:30 AM

Not overly optimistic going into this one, but if they can play solid D and get a bounce or two anything can happen. On paper the Pens are just too banged up to run with these guys right now...

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written by Munchezuma, February 21, 2011 - 11:09 AM

With everything that has happened, do you think anyone takes a jab at Steckel? I wonder if both teams won't get a private warning before the game.

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written by Bones, February 21, 2011 - 11:35 AM

I think that Wallace ended the Steckel situation in the last game. It sounds like Steckel doesn't have a reputation for being a dirty player and most players believe that it was an accident.

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written by Bones, February 21, 2011 - 01:23 PM

Hmm, I starting to think it was a good move not to order that Goligoski jersey...

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written by Disgruntled Goat, February 21, 2011 - 03:57 PM

I would consider anything but a #87 jersey a poor long term investment.

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