Capitals at Ducks preview

CAPITALS (21-4-5) at DUCKS (12-12-4)
10 p.m. ET; ESPN+, SNE, SNO, SNP, KCOP-13, NBCSWA+, NHL.TV

The Capitals won the first three games of their four-game road trip and are 13-2-1 away from home this season. They've outscored their opponents 21-11 in their past five games.
The Ducks are coming off a 4-2 win at home against the Kings on Monday but are 2-3-2 in their past seven games. That includes a 5-2 loss against the Capitals in Washington on Nov. 18. Anaheim last won consecutive games Oct. 29 and Nov. 1.

Players to watch

Capitals defenseman John Carlson has six points (three goals, three assists) during a three-game point streak and leads NHL defensemen with 42 points (11 goals, 31 assists) in 30 games.
Ducks forward Ryan Getzlaf has nine points (two goals, seven assists) in the past eight games, and has 15 points (three goals, 12 assists) during a seven-game point streak against the Capitals.

They said it

"We've been better with leads I would say. ... It seems like we're a lot more in control than early on in the season." -- Capitals defenseman John Carlson
"Our main concern is the two points we need desperately. Nothing else." -- Ducks coach Dallas Eakins

Capitals projected lineup

Alex Ovechkin -- Evgeny Kuznetsov -- Tom Wilson
Jakub Vrana -- Lars Eller - T.J. Oshie
Carl Hagelin -- Travis Boyd -- Richard Panik
Brendan Leipsic -- Nic Dowd -- Garnet Hathaway
Michal Kempny -- John Carlson
Dmitry Orlov -- Nick Jensen
Jonas Siegenthaler -- Radko Gudas
Braden Holtby
Ilya Samsonov
Scratched: None
Injured: Nicklas Backstrom (upper body)

Ducks projected lineup

Rickard Rakell -- Ryan Getzlaf -- Troy Terry
Max Comtois -- Adam Henrique -- Jakob Silfverberg
Nick Ritchie -- Sam Steel -- Ondrej Kase
Nicolas Deslauriers -- Derek Grant -- Carter Rowney
Hampus Lindholm -- Michael Del Zotto
Cam Fowler -- Erik Gudbranson
Brendan Guhle -- Korbinian Holzer
Ryan Miller
John Gibson
Scratched: Devin Shore, Josh Mahura, Anthony Stolarz
Injured: Josh Manson (lower body)

Status report

Backstrom participated in the morning skate but will miss his eighth straight game. ... Gibson missed the game against the Kings because of illness. He took part in an optional morning skate but Ducks coach Dallas Eakins would not reveal his starting goaltender.

Stat pack

The Capitals lead the NHL with 47 points, which is a Washington record through 30 games. ... Ovechkin has 255 power-play goals, tied with Teemu Selanne for third in NHL history. ... Vrana has seven points (four goals, three assists) in the past six games. ... Grant has six goals in the past eight games.