2. NOT SO ROAD WEARY
The Capitals enter tonight's game in a battle for the Metropolitan Division lead, currently tied with the Islanders at 83 points... Washington has won four straight games and six of their last seven, and have not lost back-to-back games since before the All-Star Break...Tonight's game marks the end of a three-game road trip and a stretch in which they have played 9 of their last 11 games away from home... The defending champs have won each of the last four games in very different fashion: a blowout (7-2 vs OTT), overtime win (6-5 vs NYR), low-scoring, close victory (3-1 at NYI) and shootout win (3-2 at NYR).
3. RANDOM GOALS
The Flyers have scored the first goal in each of their last four games, and have earned points in 26 of 29 games when they score the first goal, while the Caps have allowed the first goal in each of their last five games and their 15 wins when they allow the first goal is T-4th among all NHL teams... The Caps are one of the best teams in the NHL for most second-period goals (2nd: 86), while the Flyers are one of the best in the NHL for most third-period goals (6th: 80)... Since Jan. 31, the Flyers have had the NHL's best power play, operating at 33.3% and going 15-for-45, recording a goal on the man-advantage in 10 of 16 games.
4. US, THEM, US vs. THEM
US: Claude Giroux (2g-7a) and Travis Sanheim (4g-2a) are each riding a five-game point streak, while Travis Konecny has points in four straight (3g-2a)... THEM:Caps' goaltender Braden Holtby is one win shy of 250 career wins - he can become the second fastest goaltender in NHL history to reach the mark (409th career game), trailing only Ken Dryden (381 career games)... USvsTHEM: It's the second of four meetings of the season series and first at the Wells Fargo Center... The Caps took a 5-3 win on Jan. 8 at Washington, where they have won two straight against the Flyers, but the Flyers have won their last two against the Caps in Philadelphia, outscoring them 14 to 5 in the process... These two teams will meet three times in the next 19 days.
5. PLAYERS TO WATCH:
FLYERS (C: #14 - Sean Couturier)
Couturier has not gone two straight games without a point in a two month span (Jan. 5-7)... He has posted 12 goals and 20 points in 32 games in that span, which leads the Flyers and ranks T-5th among all NHL players... With six PPG, he is one-goal shy of equaling his career-high of power-play goals in a season, and at 14 PPP, he is one point shy of posting a new career-high in power-play points in a season.
CAPITALS (LW: #8 - Alex Ovechkin)
Ovechkin enters tonight with goals in six of his last nine games... He went scoreless in his last game, but has not gone without a point in back-to-back games since before the All-Star break (Jan. 18-20)... Ovechkin's 45 goals paces every player in the NHL and leads the next closest player on his team by 24 goals (Oshie: 21)... He is five shy of 50 goals, which would be his eighth 50-goal campaign in his 14th season in the NHL and first since 2015-16... He is also three points shy of 1,200 in the NHL.
