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PHILADELPHIA -- Sergei Gonchar has piled up 618 points in the NHL -- including an assist in the Penguins' 5-4 victory against Philadelphia at the Wachovia Center yesterday -- so he has a real appreciation for the offensive facets of the game.
Matchup: Penguins at Washington Capitals, 12:38 today, Verizon Center.
TV, radio: WPXI; WXDX-FM (105.9).
Probable goaltenders: Marc-Andre Fleury for Penguins. Jose Theodore for Capitals.
Penguins: Are 5-1 in past six visits to Washington. ... C Sidney Crosby has seven goals, 16 assists in 13 career games against Capitals. ... Have gone 2-7 in games that begin at 3:08 p.m. or earlier.
Capitals: Lead season series, 2-0, with both victories at Mellon Arena. ... LW Alex Ovechkin has 28 goals in his past 31 games. ... Are 9-2-4 in games tied after two periods.
Hidden stat: Washington has scored at least one first-period goal in 11 consecutive games.
Understandably, he is impressed by Washington's Mike Green, who recently became the first defenseman in NHL history to score a goal in eight consecutive games.
"It's a great feat for him," said Gonchar, who broke into the NHL with the Capitals and is the No. 4 scorer among defensemen in franchise history, trailing only Calle Johansson, Scott Stevens and Kevin Hatcher. "I believe he'll score a lot of goals in this league."
Actually, Green already has.
He has 43 in 220 career games, including 22 -- most of any NHL defenseman -- in 46 games this season.
The Penguins will try to prevent him from padding those totals when they face the Capitals today at the Verizon Center.
Green isn't the only Washington player who will command their attention, though. The Capitals' lineup features the likes of Alex Ovechkin, who has a league-high 42 goals, Nicklas Backstrom and Alexander Semin, among others.
They not only represent serious threats on their own, but can bring out the best in a teammate with Green's skills and instincts.
"Obviously, he has a good group around him," Gonchar said. "They're creating a lot of scoring chances for him, and he takes advantage.
"He moves the puck very well and has a very good shot. It looks like he has a feeling for when to jump in [to an offensive play], and he obviously has all the skills in the world."
Green, by the way, initially balked at giving the stick that had produced all 10 goals he scored during that eight-game stretch to the Hall of Fame, but subsequently agreed to it.
Despite a 4-1 loss to Colorado Friday night at the Verizon Center, Washington already has won 24 homes games, matching its total from last season.
But while the combination of the Capitals' success at home and the Penguins' struggles on the road does not bode well for the Penguins, there is at least one reason for optimism: Washington's past three regulation losses have been to opponents -- the Avalanche, Los Angeles and Ottawa -- that are not in the top eight of their respective conferences.
Neither, of course, are the Penguins.
Then again, Washington played so poorly against Colorado that it would be folly for the Penguins to expect a repeat.
"We had nothing; we were horrible out there," Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau told reporters. "Everybody had their bad game at the same time. You win a lot of games in a row, you're going to have a stinker."
The Capitals, by the way, have not lost consecutive games since dropping three in a row from Jan. 9-13. One other ominous portent for the Penguins: Washington is 11-1-3 against Atlantic Division opponents.
Penguins coach Dan Bylsma said after the game he has not decided whether to start Marc-Andre Fleury or Mathieu Garon, who made his only Penguins appearance in goal in a 5-4 loss at Toronto Jan. 31, today. ... Defenseman Kris Letang and forward Bill Thomas were the Penguins' healthy scratches for the second game in a row.
