Capitals at Blue Jackets preview
Atkinson set for 500th NHL game for Columbus; Washington plays first of six straight on road
by Craig Merz / NHL.com Correspondent
WASHINGTON (31-18-7) at BLUE JACKETS (31-20-3)
7 p.m. ET; FS-O, NBCSWA, NHL.TV
The Game
Cam Atkinson will play his 500th NHL game for the Columbus Blue Jackets, who will try to extend their winning streak to four games when they face the Washington Capitals at Nationwide Arena on Tuesday.
Atkinson will be the sixth Blue Jackets player to reach the milestone. Retired forward Rick Nash is their all-time leader with 674 games played.
The Capitals completed a 4-1-1 homestand with a 6-4 win against the Los Angeles Kings on Monday and begin a season-high six-game road trip. They lead the Blue Jackets by four points for second in the Metropolitan Division and are three points behind the New York Islanders.
Players to watch
Capitals forward Evgeny Kuznetsov has 10 points (five goals, five assists) in a four-game point streak and 15 points (seven goals, eight assists) in his past eight games.
Blue Jackets forward Josh Anderson has scored in three straight games and has six points (four goals, two assists) in his past six.
They said it
"This homestand was pivotal for us to gather as many points as we could. It didn't go perfect but at least we were able to bank some points before we go on the road." -- Capitals coach Todd Reirden
"It's something that I'll look back when I'm done playing and realize everything I've accomplished, but there's a lot more that I have to do." -- Blue Jackets forward Cam Atkinson on his 500th NHL game
Capitals projected lineup
Alex Ovechkin -- Evgeny Kuznetsov -- Tom Wilson
Jakub Vrana -- Nicklas Backstrom -- T.J. Oshie
Andre Burakovsky -- Lars Eller -- Brett Connolly
Chandler Stephenson -- Nic Dowd -- Devante Smith-Pelly
Michal Kempny -- John Carlson
Dmitry Orlov -- Matt Niskanen
Brooks Orpik -- Christian Djoos
Braden Holtby
Pheonix Copley
Scratched: Madison Bowey, Dmitrij Jaskin, Travis Boyd
Injured: None
Blue Jackets projected lineup
Artemi Panarin -- Pierre-Luc Dubois -- Cam Atkinson
Nick Foligno -- Boone Jenner -- Josh Anderson
Anthony Duclair -- Alexander Wennberg -- Oliver Bjorkstrand
Markus Hannikainen -- Riley Nash -- Lukas Sedlak
Seth Jones -- Ryan Murray
Zach Werenski -- David Savard
Scott Harrington -- Markus Nutivaara
Sergei Bobrovsky
Joonas Korpisalo
Scratched: Dean Kukan, Eric Robinson
Injured: Brandon Dubinsky (hip)
Status report
Washington did not have a morning skate. … Dubinsky will miss his fourth straight game.
Stat pack
Ovechkin has seven points (one goal, six assists) in a four-game point streak and 12 points (five goals, seven assists) in his past seven games. … Panarin has 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in his past seven games and 29 points (12 goals, 17 assists) in his past 20.