CAPITALS (28-23-9) at PENGUINS (28-24-8)
7 p.m. ET; SN-PIT, MNMT
Capitals projected lineup
Alex Ovechkin -- Hendrix Lapierre -- Aliaksei Protas
Max Pacioretty -- Connor McMichael -- Tom Wilson
Ivan Miroshnichenko -- Dylan Strome -- Sonny Milano
Beck Malenstyn -- Michael Sgarbossa -- Nicolas Aube-Kubel
Trevor van Riemsdyk -- John Carlson
Rasmus Sandin -- Nick Jensen
Ethan Bear -- Alexander Alexeyev
Darcy Kuemper
Charlie Lindgren
Scratched: Hunter Shepard
Injured: T.J. Oshie (upper body), Martin Fehervary (lower body), Nic Dowd (upper body)
Penguins projected lineup
Lars Eller -- Sidney Crosby -- Rickard Rakell
Reilly Smith -- Evgeni Malkin -- Valtteri Puustinen
Jesse Puljujarvi -- Noel Acciari -- Emil Bemstrom
Jansen Harkins -- Joona Koppanen -- Jeff Carter
Pierre-Olivier Joseph -- Kris Letang
Marcus Pettersson -- Erik Karlsson
Ryan Graves -- Chad Ruhwedel
Tristan Jarry
Alex Nedeljkovic
Scratched: John Ludvig, Jonathan Gruden
Injured: Jake Guentzel (upper body), Bryan Rust (upper body), Matt Nieto (knee surgery), Drew O’Connor (concussion)
Status report
Bear could enter the lineup for the first time since Feb. 27 after the Capitals traded defenseman Joel Edmundson to the Toronto Maple Leafs for a third-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft and fifth-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft on Thursday. ... Kuemper, originally expected to start, will be a game-time decision because of an illness. ... Shepard, a goalie, was recalled from Hershey of the American Hockey League on Thursday. ... check betting odds on MDbetting.com. ... Guentzel did not take contact in a third straight morning skate Thursday; the forward, who will miss his 11th straight game, is is eligible to return from long-term injured reserve Saturday. ... Acciari and Hawkins each will be a game-time decision after participating in the Penguins morning skate Thursday; each forward missed a 5-3 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday because of an upper-body injury. ... O’Connor, a forward, will not play after being injured against Columbus.
