Caps try to slow down high-paced Islanders attack

In something of a role reversal from recent years, the grinding Washington Capitals host the high-scoring New York Islanders in a Metropolitan Division battle on Wednesday.

With Alex Ovechkin leading the way, scoring hasn't been much of an issue for Washington, traditionally. This season, however, the Capitals' average of 2.39 goals per game is better than only the San Jose Sharks and Chicago Blackhawks. Additionally, Ovechkin has only five goals in 28 games. His 13-game scoring drought is the longest of his 19 NHL seasons.

Yet even with this inconsistent offense, the Capitals are still getting results. Washington is 3-1-1 in its past five games, including a 2-1 shootout win over the host Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday despite managing only 21 shots on goal.

"We've been in a few of these now of just grinding our way through, where you can tell fatigue is a factor and we're trying to manage the game situation," Washington coach Spencer Carbery said. "Being smart in these games and situations is what our team takes a lot of pride in doing."

The Islanders are also coming off a hard-fought win, as New York recorded a 3-1 victory over the visiting Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday despite being outshot 31-21. New York was carried by a special-terms surge in the second period, scoring twice on the power play and once short-handed.

The Islanders own a 10-2-5 record over their past 17 games, in large part due to one of the team's better offensive stretches in years. New York scored at least three goals in 16 of those 17 games.

Forward Bo Horvat has been a big contributor to the scoring surge. His second-period goal Tuesday ended up as the game-winner, and Horvat has 17 points (eight goals, nine assists) over an 11-game point streak.

"I guess it's just happening for me right now. I don't know what else to say about it," Horvat said. "It definitely feels good to get wins behind it and have success as a team. So I'm just trying to do my part and thankfully they're going in."

The Islanders are 17-for-49 (34.7 percent) with the extra attacker over the past 17 games. The streaking power play will be tested by the Capitals' strong penalty kill, which is 19-for-20 over Washington's past five games.

New York is 0-2-2 in the second game of back-to-backs this season.

After Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin faced the Oilers on Tuesday, Semyon Varlamov will probably start Wednesday in the second half of the back-to-back set. Varlamov is 6-4-1 with a 2.73 goals-against average over 11 starts this season.

The Capitals also play on Thursday against the Columbus Blue Jackets, so goalies Darcy Kuemper and Charlie Lindgren are likely to split the starts.

Washington placed T.J. Oshie (lower-body injury) on injured reserve on Tuesday, and Sonny Milano (upper-body injury) has missed the last three games. The Capitals added reinforcements by calling up forwards Ivan Miroshnichenko and Hendrix Lapierre from Hershey of the AHL.

New York forward Julien Gauthier (undisclosed injury) is questionable to face Washington after leaving the Tuesday game in the second period.

The Islanders and Capitals split their first two meetings of the season, with the road team winning each game.