Calgary @ Washington preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 27, 2018 ) Washington 4, Calgary 3

The combined NHLPA-mandated/All-Star break came at a great time for the Washington Capitals, who will try to snap a seven-game losing streak when they host the Calgary Flames on Friday without their best player. Alex Ovechkin, who leads the league with 37 goals, will serve a one-game suspension for not participating in the All-Star Game - leaving Washington short-handed against red-hot Calgary.

"I think the break is coming at a good time for us," Washington coach Todd Reirden told reporters. "We understand that there is a lot of work to be done when we get back, and I have a lot of confidence in our leadership group and in the group in that room that has been through adversity and have shown their true colors when push comes to shove. So that's what I expect when we get back." The 0-5-2 slide, which was paused after a 6-3 loss at Toronto on Jan. 23, is the club's longest in some five years and has brought them back into a four-team scrimmage with the New York Islanders, Pittsburgh and Columbus for Metropolitan Division supremacy. The Flames haven't played since a 3-2 overtime win over Carolina on Jan. 22 was their eighth victory in the last nine games (8-0-1), and they lead the Western Conference with 71 points - five shy of league-leading Tampa Bay. "We're proud of what we've done up to this point, but we're not where we want to be yet," Calgary forward Mark Jankowski told reporters. "There's a lot of season left to go, and these next 30-something games are going to be a grind. We have to come back from the break ready to come right back right where we left off."

TV: 7 p.m. ET, Sportsnet West (Calgary), NBCS Washington

ABOUT THE FLAMES (33-13-5): Calgary's top line of Johnny Gaudreau, Sean Monahan and Elias Lindholm has accounted for 40.5 percent of the team's goals and 37.1 percent of its points. Gaudreau leads the club with 29 goals and 73 points, scoring eight times and finishing with 18 points in 11 January games. Monahan (27 goals, 61 points) and Lindholm (21, 58) weren't as prolific as Gaudreau last month, but combined for nine goals and 18 assists.

ABOUT THE CAPITALS (27-17-6): Ovechkin leads the team with 57 points followed by Nicklas Backstrom (51), who has a goal and four assists in his last three games. John Carlson, who won the Hardest Shot competition at the All-Star game, has 47 points - fourth-most among defensemen in the league - and his 39 assists pace the club. Braden Holtby allowed 16 goals in three games prior to the break and has struggled in eight contests versus Calgary, going 4-2-1 with a 3.07 goals-against average and .889 save percentage.

OVERTIME

1. Calgary averages 3.73 goals - second in the league to Tampa Bay (3.96) - and paces the NHL with 15 short-handed scores.

2. Washington has yielded four power-play goals in nine chances over the last three games while Calgary is 7-for-17 with the man advantage in its past four contests.

3. The teams have split their last 10 meetings with the road team winning seven of the last nine after Washington's 4-3 shootout victory Oct. 27.

PREDICTION: Flames 3, Capitals 2