Blackhawks catch Capitals at the right time

Chicago Blackhawks (15-18-7, 37 pts) @ Washington Capitals (21-15-5, 47 pts)
6 pm CT – Capital One Arena
TV: CHSN (Ball/Pang)
Radio: WGN 720 AM (Wiedeman/Konroyd)

There is an old saying about it’s not who you play, but rather when you play them. That theory was proven recently when the Chicago Blackhawks caught the Dallas Stars during a rare down stretch, beating them twice in five days. Now, they see the Washington Capitals while they aren’t playing their best hockey of the season. While they currently hold the top wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, they have only three wins in their last 10 games.

Meanwhile, the Blackhawks have gone 2-1-1 out of the holiday break. They are playing a simple, north-south brand of hockey with everyone contributing. Head coach Jeff Blashill needed a few games without Connor Bedard and Frank Nazar to find the right line combinations. He will roll the same lineup that has earned three points in the last two games against the Stars and New York Islanders.

Not the Same Capitals

When you scroll down to the team leaders, the Capitals section will look strange. One name does not appear on it: Alex Ovechkin. The NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer is not having a bad season, with 15 goals and 34 points in 41 games, but he just isn’t dominating like we are used to seeing.

Scrolling down even further, it will be very strange to see the Capitals with the 28th-ranked power play. Nobody has scored more power-play goals in NHL history than Ovechkin. It is so bizarre that he only has two power-play goals this season.

The Blackhawks' penalty kill has been strong all season long. They went a perfect 4-for-4 against the Stars on Sunday and are tied for third in the league at 83.7%. They have killed off 12 of their last 13 penalties on the road.

Strike With the Advantage

Speaking of special teams, the Blackhawks' power play has started to heat up. They have three goals in the last two games after going one goal in the first seven games without Bedard. They have done a lot of damage on the road while on the man advantage. They have nine goals in their last 30 road power plays, which is fifth in the league since Nov. 5.

Tyler Bertuzzi has been a force on the power play this season. He leads the Blackhawks with eight power-play goals, with seven of them coming on the road. He is two shy of his career high heading into tonight’s game. Artyom Levshov, who scored on the man advantage on Thursday, is second among NHL rookies with 10 power-play points.

Hey Mickey!

Ilya Mikheyev has been a solid addition to the Blackhawks' lineup for the past season and a half. He has the speed and defensive prowess to hang with any skater in the league. He’s brought some offense to his game lately. He scored a pair of goals, including the game-winner, the last time out. It was his second two-goal game in his last four contests. He had a pair of tallies against the Senators on Dec. 20.

Mikheyev has loved playing Washington in his career. He has four goals and nine points in 10 career games versus the Capitals. In the last eight games, he has four goals and eight points. Look for him to stay hot tonight, while being a big factor on the penalty kill. He is third among all NHL forwards with 2:58 of shorthanded ice time per game.

Season Series

1/3 @ WSH
1/9 vs WSH

Blackhawks Team Leaders

G-Connor Bedard/Tyler Bertuzzi (19)
A-Bedard (25)
P-Bedard (44)
PPG-Tyler Bertuzzi (8)
GWG-Bedard (3)
SOG-Bedard (103)
PIM-Colton Dach (45)

Capitals Team Leaders

G-Tom Wilson (22)
A-Dylan Strome (22)
P-Wilson (42)
PPG-Wilson (7)
GWG-Jakob Chychrun (4)
SOG-Chychrun (140)
PIM-Wilson (59)

Blackhawks Team Stats

GF/G-2.78 (24th)
GA/G-3.18 (20st)
PP%-21.1 (12th)
PK%-83.6 (4th)
SOG/G-25.0 (31st)
SA/G-30.0 (28th)
FO%-46.4 (31st)
PIM/G-10:42 (29th)

Capitals Team Stats

GF/G-3.24 (9th)
GA/G-2.78 (8th)
PP%-16.0 (28th)
PK%-76.7 (25th)
SOG/G-29.2 (9th)
SA/G-27.8 (13th)
FO%-48.9 (23rd)
PIM/G-8:49 (19th)

Blackhawks Probable Lines

Forwards
Tyler Bertuzzi-Ryan Greene-Andre Burakovsky
Teuvo Teravainen-Oliver Moore-Nick Lardis
Ryan Donato-Jason Dickinson-Ilya Mikheyev
Colton Dach-Nick Foligno-Landon Slaggert

Defensemen
Alex Vlasic-Louis Crevier
Wyatt Kaiser-Artyom Levshunov
Matt Grzelcyk-Connor Murphy

Scratched
D-Ethan Del Mastro, F-Sam Lafferty

Injured

F-Connor Bedard (upper body), F-Frank Nazar (upper body),

Capitals Probable Lines

Forwards
Aliaksei Protas-Dylan Strome-Alex Ovechkin
Connor McMichael-Justin Sourdif-Tom Wilson
Anthony Beauvillier-Nic Dowd-Ryan Leonard
Brandon Duhaime-Hendrix Lapierre-Ethen Frank

Defensemen
Rasmus Sandin-John Carlson
Jakob Chychrun-Matt Roy
Martin Fehervary-Trevor van Riemsdyk

Scratched
F-Sonny Milano, D-Dylan McIlrath, D-Declan Chisholm

Injured
F-Pierre-Luc Dubous (Abdomen)

Goaltending Matchup

Spencer Knight (11-11-6, 2.63 GAA, .909 SV%, 2 SO) vs Logan Thompson (15-11-3, 2.39 GAA, .913 SV%, 2 SO)