Game Notes
The 2022.23 season marks the 19th season that generational talents Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin face off. The two have taken part in 65 head-to-head matchups, where Crosby and the Penguins have gone 38-23-4 against Ovechkin and the Capitals.
Jake Guentzel has recorded 26 points (11G-15A) versus the Capitals with two game-winning goals in 23 games. He has points in six-straight games against Washington (3G-6A) dating back to Nov. 13, 2021.
Bryan Rust has 20 points (12G-8A) in 30 career games versus the Capitals, which includes six goals over his last seven games against Washington. Additionally, Rust scored the first goal of the game on Tuesday, and has now scored a season-opening goal for the third straight season. Per NHLPR, the only player in Penguins history with a longer streak is Kevin Stevens (4x from 1989.90 to 1992.93).
Offseason acquisition Lars Eller returns to Capital One Arena for the first time since being traded from Washington at the trade deadline last season. Eller played parts of seven seasons with the Capitals from 2016-23, and was an instrumental part of Washington’s 2018 Stanley Cup Championship, notching a career-high 18 points (7G-11A) during that postseason run.
One of Pittsburgh’s offseason pickups, Matt Nieto, enters tonight’s game one point shy of 200 in his career. Last season, Nieto split the 2022.23 campaign between the San Jose Sharks and Colorado Avalanche, recording 12 goals, 12 assists, 24 points, and two game-winning goals in 81 games.
