Two teams, both currently fighting to get into the Top 3 of the Metropolitan Division, will face off against each other in Manhattan, as the 4th-placed New York Rangers will host the 5th-placed Washington Capitals.
The Washington Capitals (19-13-4) are coming out of the Christmas break, currently sitting 5th in the Metropolitan Division with 42 points from 36 games (.583 points percentage), finding themselves just two points ahead of the New York Islanders for the 2nd Wild Card of the Eastern Conference. The Caps are riding a four-game winning streak overall, a five-game triumph run on the road and have dropped just one of their past 10 overall decisions (9-1-0). Captain Alex Ovechkin, who scored twice in Washington’s 4-1 victory against the Winnipeg Jets on Friday to overcome Gordie Howe for the 2nd place on the NHL’s all-time goals list with 802 career snipes, leads Washington with 22 markers and 41 points this year.
Goalie Darcy Kuemper has started the most games in the crease for the Capitals this season (21), posting a 9-9- 2 tally with a 2.53 GAA and a .916 save percentage. He is 6-1-0 versus the New York Rangers in previous encounters with a 2.44 GAA and a .908 save percentage, while Charlie Lindgren (10-4-2 on the year with a 2.60 GAA and a .912 save percentage) has never faced the Blueshirts before. The Capitals, meanwhile, are netting the 14th lowest amount of goals per game in 2022-23 (3.08), while conceding the 10th lowest quantity defensively (2.78). They are 20th in power play (20.8%) and 7th in penalty kill (80.8%).