Pluses, minuses for Flyers, Capitals

Each Wednesday throughout the regular season, Kevin Weekes will be offering his pluses and minuses for the teams competing in the NBCSN Wednesday Night Rivalry game in his Weekes on the Web blog. Weekes also will assist fans with three must-watch elements of the game.

The Washington Capitals have somewhat flown under the radar, but lead the tough Metropolitan Division more than halfway through the season.
The Philadelphia Flyers are 16-6-1 since losing 10 straight games (0-5-5) and hold the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference.
The Flyers (24-17-8) look for their third win against the Capitals (29-15-5) this season when they visit Capital One Arena on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; NBCSN, NHL.TV). Here's my breakdown of the game:

Flyers

Pluses:Philadelphia has won eight of 10 games (8-2-0). Claude Giroux has been great since switching from center to wing. He has 57 points (14 goals, 43 assists), one fewer than he had last season. He has performed well on the top line with Sean Couturier, who has really taken his game offensively to another level (26 goals, 49 points). Known as a defensive specialist in seasons past, Couturier has been one of the best two-way players in the NHL this season. And we can't forget about Jakub Voracek (9-47-56).

Defensemen Shayne Gostisbehere and Ivan Provorov have played well defensively and offensively, but they aren't the only young players performing. Second-year forward Travis Konecny has scored in four straight games, including two straight in overtime prior to the All-Star break.
Minuses:One of the challenges for the Flyers is they still don't get enough out of their fourth line players. Jori Lehtera, Scott Laughton, Dale Weise and Taylor Leier have combined for 12 goals and 27 points this season, with Laughton (seven goals, seven assists) accounting for more than half of that.
Another challenge has been inconsistency. They followed up a 10-game losing streak with a six-game winning streak, then lost five of seven. This has been a problem for them the past few seasons. Remember in 2016-17, they became the first team to miss the playoffs after having a 10-game winning streak during the regular season.
When they get in trouble, they struggle and get sloppy defensively. They've allowed at least four goals in five of their seven most recent losses. And goalie Brian Elliott, who was playing well, was placed on injured reserve with a lower-body injury Tuesday. It'll likely be up to Michal Neuvirth to hold down the fort.

Capitals

Pluses:The Capitals are four points ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins for first place in the Metropolitan Division and have done so with remarkably little fanfare. After winning the Presidents' Trophy in each of the past two seasons, many thought they took a step back in the offseason when they lost key pieces. However, they haven't gone without points in more than two straight games this season.
Alex Ovechkin is in great shape. He scored his 30th goal Thursday to join Mike Gartner and Wayne Gretzky as the only two players to begin their NHL careers with 13 straight 30-goal seasons. Players don't play the way Ovechkin does in this era and it has been impressive to watch.

Evgeny Kuznetsov and Nicklas Backstrom sometimes gets lost because of how well Ovechkin has played, but not to him. Ovechkin raved about how well they've played and how much they mean to the Capitals. Kuznetsov's 45 points (13 goals, 32 assists) are second on the Capitals behind Ovechkin's 53. Backstrom is tied with defenseman John Carlson for third with 38 (10 goals, 28 assists).
Braden Holtby, who won the Vezina Trophy in 2015-16 and finished second last season, has played well (25-9-2, 2.66 goals-against average, .917 save percentage). So has backup Philipp Grubauer (4-6-3, 2.56 GAA, .917 save percentage).
Minuses:Their defense had to be remade with the losses of Kevin Shattenkirk and Karl Alzner in free agency and Nate Schmidt to the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2017 NHL Expansion Draft. They still have Carlson but it's been a work in progress with Taylor Chorney, Madison Bowey and Christian Djoos getting regular minutes.
Without Justin Williams, who signed with the Carolina Hurricanes as a free agent July 1, how will they fare without a veteran who's been deep in the playoffs many times and is a three-time Stanley Cup champion? That's the kind of player you want in the locker room, especially at this time of the season.
I think the Capitals have emptied the tank the past two regular seasons. Let's see how they do down the stretch. Who plays or sees their minutes curtailed? Their success and ability to overcome has been part of their detriment in the playoffs. It's not about the regular season any more with them. It's about winning the Cup or advancing to the Eastern Conference Final for the first time since 1998.
THREE THINGS TO WATCH
1. The special teams matchup. The Flyers and Capitals have each converted on at least 20 percent of their power plays.
2. How does Neuvirth, who started his NHL career with the Capitals, fare?
3. Who draws the assignment against Ovechkin? It could be Couturier's line.