The Caps have gone 8-1-1 over their past 10 games, but have gone 2-1-1 over their past four. They've lost just three times in regulation and bring a 15-3-4 mark into tonight's contest. Surprisingly, they've done better on the road than at home with a 10-1-1 mark on the road and a 5-2-3 record at Capital One Arena.
"We played an excellent team last game," said Ducks head coach Dallas Eakins. "We were able to duck in, score when we needed to and get out of there. We're playing an extremely heavy, experienced team here tonight. We're going to get a full dose of exactly where we want to get to as a team."
Offensive stalwarts like Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, Evgeny Kuznetsov and TJ Oshie are getting it done up front, but the Capitals are led in scoring by defenseman John Carlson. With 32 points (8g/24a) this season, the 29-year-old became the sixth defenseman in NHL history to require 20 or fewer games to reach the 30-point mark and the first since Al MacInnis in 1990-91 with Calgary. Carlson enters tonight's matchup riding a six-game point streak (1g/8a) and has a point in 18 of his 22 games this season.
The Ducks have found success against the Caps as of late with wins in three straight. A victory tonight would tie the club record originally set March 19, 1996-Dec. 12, 1997 (4-0-0).
"Big morale boost for the group knowing you can play with teams of that caliber," Adam Henrique said, on defeating the Blues. "Hopefully we can take the one from the last game and carry over into tonight and put it on the ice again. It'll be a tough road trip for us, but we got off to a good start. Gotta keep growing as a group."
Anaheim has posted a 19-12-6 all-time record vs. Washington, including a 10-6-3 mark at Capital One Arena. The last time the Ducks were at Capital One Arena, they pulled off a comeback for the ages. Down 5-1, the Ducks rallied to win 6-5 marking the first time in club history they rallied from four goals down to win on the road (and the first such comeback win in regulation). The only other instance came at home in overtime when they came back from 4-0 to beat Winnipeg 5-4 on March 31, 2014.
Ryan Getzlaf paces active Ducks in career scoring vs. Washington with 25 points (7g/18a) in 18 games and has points in six straight against the Caps (3g/11a). Jakob Silfverberg has seven points (4g/3a) in his last six vs. the Caps while Adam Henrique has points in three straight (3g/3a).
