Senators at Penguins preview

SENATORS (28-41-11) at PENGUINS (46-29-6)
7:30 p.m. ET; ATTSN-PT, RDS, TSN5, NHL.TV

After defeating the Columbus Blue Jackets 5-4 in a shootout Thursday, Pittsburgh is second in the Metropolitan Division. It is one point ahead of Columbus and the New Jersey Devils, who each have one game remaining.
The Penguins, who have won four of six (4-2-0), have five more regulation/overtime wins than the Blue Jackets and Devils.
Ottawa will play its penultimate game of the season before finishing against the Boston Bruins on Saturday. It has lost eight of its past 10 games (2-8-0) and will look for two straight wins for the first time since a three-game winning streak from March 12-16.
The Penguins have won each of their two previous games against the Senators this season by a combined score of 9-4, including a 6-3 home win on Feb. 13.

Players to watch

Senators forward Matt Duchene has four points (three goals, one assist) in his past two games.
Penguins forward Patric Hornqvist has eight points (five goals, three assists) during a six-game point streak. He has a goal in each of his past four games, five of his past six and six of his past eight.

They said it

"I expect [the Penguins'] very best. They're home. They're a hungry team. They're a driven team." -- Senators coach Guy Boucher
"It's getting to be that time of year where you're going to have to battle and get wins." -- Penguins forward Phil Kessel

Senators projected lineup

Mike Hoffman -- Matt Duchene --
Colin White
Alexandre Burrows -- Jean-Gabriel Pageau -- Bobby Ryan
Magnus Paajarvi -- Zack Smith -- Tom Pyatt
Max McCormick -- Filip Chlapik -- Ryan Dzingel
Mark Borowiecki -- Thomas Chabot
Fredrik Claesson -- Cody Ceci
Ben Harpur -- Christian Wolanin
Craig Anderson
Daniel Taylor
Scratched:Erik Karlsson
Injured:Mark Stone (leg), Mike Condon (concussion), Chris Wideman (hamstring), Marian Gaborik (back)

Penguins projected lineup

Jake Guentzel -- Sidney Crosby -- Bryan Rust
Carl Hagelin -- Evgeni Malkin -- Patric Hornqvist
Conor Sheary -- Riley Sheahan -- Phil Kessel
Zach Aston-Reese -- Josh Jooris -- Tom Kuhnhackl
Brian Dumoulin -- Kris Letang
Olli Maatta -- Justin Schultz
Matt Hunwick -- Jamie Oleksiak
Matt Murray
Casey DeSmith
Scratched: Chad Ruhwedel, Dominik Simon
Injured: Derick Brassard (lower body), Carter Rowney (upper body)

Status report

Stone will not play in either of Ottawa's final two games. He has missed 13 straight games since March 9. … Brassard, who had not resumed skating as of Thursday, is expected to miss his fifth straight game.

Stat pack

Pyatt (43 goals, 56 assists) needs one point to reach 100 in his NHL career. … Murray is one shutout from tying Johan Hedberg for fourth on the Penguins' all-time list with seven. … Penguins coach Mike Sullivan needs one win to reach 200 in the NHL.