Pluses, minuses for Penguins-Capitals

Each Wednesday throughout the regular season, NHL Network analyst Kevin Weekes will be offering his pluses and minuses for the teams competing in the NBCSN "Wednesday Night Hockey" game in his Weekes on the Web blog.

This week on "Wednesday Night Hockey," it's a matchup of two Metropolitan Division rivals.
The Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals have split two one-goal games this season, and each had a Stanley Cup Playoff-type atmosphere. The Capitals defeated the two-time defending champion Penguins in six games in the Eastern Conference Second Round on their way to winning the Cup last season, making this rivalry not so one-sided anymore.

It should be a good one when the Penguins (15-12-6) visit the Capitals (20-9-3) at Capital One Arena (8 p.m. ET; NBCSN, TVAS).
Here's my breakdown of the game:

Penguins

Pluses: Pittsburgh is 5-2-1 in its past eight games and has gotten production from its key players during that run. Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel each has 36 points this season, and Jake Guentzel is next with 28. Defenseman Kris Letang has 26.
Goalie Casey DeSmith has played very well filling in for Matt Murray, who recently returned from a lower-body injury. DeSmith is 10-6-4 with a 2.49 goals-against average and .923 save percentage, but Murray will start for the Penguins. Murray, who struggled this season before the injury, will try to build on a 38-save performance in a 4-3 overtime win against the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday.

Minuses: The Penguins have been too inconsistent. Pittsburgh has allowed at least three goals in each of its past four games (16 total) and is allowing 3.21 goals per game this season.
Forward Patric Hornqvist, who has a concussion and hasn't played since Dec. 6, is a game-time decision but probable to play, coach Mike Sullivan said. He has 12 goals and is a big presence on the power play. They definitely miss his net-front presence, which causes havoc for other teams.

Capitals

Pluses: We have to start with Alex Ovechkin. He's leading the NHL in goals (29) and is on an NHL career-best 14-game point streak. He has 23 points (17 goals, six assists) during the streak. Ovechkin also has a six-game goal streak, including back-to-back hat tricks last week. He is one goal from his 14th straight 30-goal season to start his NHL career. The Capitals have won 12 of their past 14 games, and he is a big reason why.

John Carlson who led NHL defenseman in scoring last season with 68 points, has not slowed down this season. He has 35 points (five goals, 30 assists) in 31 games, which is tied for second among defensemen, and his plus-21 rating is tied for first in the NHL. Carlson is on pace to eclipse his offensive totals from last season, which is great news for the Capitals.
Minuses: Their third line hasn't been producing like it can. Lars Eller, who had an NHL career-high 38 points (18 goals, 20 assists) last season, has 14 (four goals, 10 assists) and is minus-7 in 32 games. He doesn't have a point in his past seven games. Devante Smith-Pelly, who had an excellent postseason, has seven points (four goals, three assists) in 32 games. The third member of the line is Brett Connolly, who has 20 points (seven goals, 13 assists) in 32 games, but he can't be expected to keep up that pace, especially when his linemates are struggling.
One negative about being the defending champion is that the Capitals will get the best from every team on every night. They started off the season poorly but have turned it around. You can bet the Penguins will be hungry for a measure of revenge after the two-time defending champions were eliminated by the Capitals last season.

THREE THINGS TO WATCH

1. Ovechkin vs. Crosby.
   2. How Murray fares for the Penguins.
   3. Which defenseman fares better, Carlson or Letang?