Washington @ Minnesota preview

Last Meeting ( Mar 22, 2019 ) Minnesota 2, Washington 1

The Minnesota Wild have joined the fray in the Western Conference playoff race with a record-setting run and try to keep the momentum going when they host the Washington Capitals on Sunday. Minnesota has scored 17 times in its last three games - equaling the club record for goals in that span first set in 2009 - and has won them all, improving to 12-5-1 in the last 18 contests.

"Right now, the way we're playing, everyone is contributing on both sides of the puck,'' Wild left wing Zach Parise told the media after recording a goal and two assists in Friday's 5-0 victory at Columbus. "Everyone is being reliable without the puck and it's working for us. The schedule is going to get tougher the next couple games, so that will be the challenge to keep playing that way on both sides of the puck." Minnesota's Alex Stalock has four shutouts this season - one off the league lead entering Saturday - after stopping 24 shots Friday and told reporters: "It's amazing. It's a momentum-type situation, and we've been on a roll. We just seem to keep rolling, rolling and going and going." Washington, which leads the Metropolitan Division, has won a league-most 21 road games but has lost four straight away from home after a 3-0 setback at Winnipeg on Thursday. "Every game gets a little tough here, especially when you're playing teams that are scratching and clawing for points, as we are," Capitals coach Todd Reirden told the media.

TIME: 8 p.m. ET. TV: NBC Sports Network

ABOUT THE CAPITALS (39-19-6): Alex Ovechkin sits third in the league with 43 goals and has 701 in his career - eight shy of passing Mike Gartner for seventh all-time - but is a club-worst minus-14. John Carlson has a team-high 72 points with 23 of his 57 assists coming on the power play, and leads NHL defensemen by a wide margin in points as the Norris Trophy favorite continues his career season. Jakub Vrana and T.J. Oshie each have 25 goals with Oshie boasting a team-high 20.3 shooting percentage.

ABOUT THE WILD (32-25-7): Kevin Fiala had a goal and an assist Friday and has 10 of his 19 goals and 19 of his team-leading 47 points in the last 13 games, and seven in the past three contests. Eric Staal has two goals and two assists in his last three games, giving him 46 points and leaving him four shy of his 14th 50-point season. Parise paces the club with 22 goals after snapping a seven-game scoreless streak while Ryan Suter registered his team-leading 36th assist Friday.

OVERTIME

1. Washington leads the league with 88 third-period goals.

2. Minnesota is 21-for-21 on the penalty kill in its last nine games.

3. The Wild snapped an eight-game series slide with a 2-1 victory over the Capitals on March 22 in the last meeting.

PREDICTION: Capitals 3, Wild 2