Washington Capitals (20-6-8, second in the Metropolitan) vs. St. Louis Blues (19-10-5, second in the Central)
St. Louis; Friday, 8 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Alex Ovechkin leads Washington into a matchup with St. Louis. He ranks third in the NHL with 50 points, scoring 24 goals and recording 26 assists.
The Blues are 12-3-2 at home. St. Louis averages 8.2 penalty minutes per game, the 10th-most in the Western Conference. Justin Faulk leads the team serving 23 total minutes.
The Capitals are 10-3-3 on the road. Washington ranks eighth in the league recording 9.2 points per game, averaging 3.4 goals and 5.7 assists.
The matchup Friday is the first meeting this season for the two teams.
TOP PERFORMERS: Vladimir Tarasenko leads the Blues with 14 goals and has 34 points. Pavel Buchnevich has 10 assists over the last 10 games for St. Louis.
Ovechkin leads the Capitals with 24 goals and has 50 points. Lars Eller has four goals over the last 10 games for Washington.
LAST 10 GAMES: Blues: 7-2-1, averaging 3.9 goals, 6.7 assists, 2.9 penalties and 6.9 penalty minutes while giving up 2.6 goals per game with a .921 save percentage.
Capitals: 6-2-2, averaging 3.2 goals, 5.5 assists, 3.5 penalties and 8.7 penalty minutes while allowing 2.7 goals per game with a .906 save percentage.
INJURIES: Blues: Dakota Joshua: out (health protocols), Robert Bortuzzo: out (health protocols).
Capitals: Lars Eller: day to day (illness).
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