Penguins Game 58, Mike Lange Ceremony; Lines, Notes & How to Watch vs. Capitals

Fans are encouraged to be in their seats early Saturday as the Pittsburgh Penguins (23-25-9) host the Washington Capitals (36-11-8), the class of the Metro Division at PPG Paints Arena.

Fans should arrive early and get seated because the organization has a tribute planned for Hall of Fame Penguins broadcaster Mike Lange, who passed away this week at the age of 76. Lange’s iconic sayings and pitch-perfect calls of Penguins games thrilled fans for five decades and gave voice to the biggest franchise moments, including five Stanley Cups.

Read More: Molinari: Remembering Mike Lange, You Had to Be Here to Believe It

The puck drops just after 3 p.m.

So get in the fast lane grandma, the bingo game is ready to roll.

Sidney Crosby, who is nursing an undetermined arm injury, is a game-time decision.

Read More: Penguins News: Sidney Crosby Will Play…Maybe

After a brutal start to their West Coast road trip, the Penguins prioritized their final five games before the break. They were 3-1-1 with a couple of tough losses despite good efforts against the New Jersey Devils (shootout) and Philadelphia Flyers (in regulation). However, the Penguins are six points with two extra games played behind the Detroit Red Wings. The Penguins have 25 games remaining.

Both the Penguins and Capitals re-fire their season today after the two-week Four Nations Face-Off break.

The Capitals have been the class of the Metro Division. After off-season acquisitions of Logan Thompson, Pierre Luc-Dubois, and Jakob Chychrun, they are a first-place team, 10 points ahead of the second-place Carolina Hurricanes.

Saturday is the first of back-to-back games. While Crosby is clearly tender, Saturday is a rivalry game with a national TV audience. Perhaps Crosby shouldn’t play, but we expect him to go. PHN will update the story at 1 p.m. after coach Mike Sullivan updates his lineup.

We expect Alex Nedeljkovic to get the start. The Penguins play again Sunday, so both Nedeljkovic and Joel Blomqvist are likely to get a start.

At practice Friday, Evgeni Malkin skated on the top line.

Update: Crosby is confirmed, however Bryan Rust is ill and will not play.

Possible Penguins Lines

Rickard Rakell-Sidney Crosby-Danton Heinen

Michael Bunting-Evgeni Malkin-Cody Glass

Anthony Beauvillier-Kevin Hayes-Philip Tomasino

Matt Nieto-Blake Lizotte-Noel Acciari

Defense

P.O Joseph-Kris Letang,

Matt Grzelcyk-Erik Karlsson,

Ryan Graves-Vincent Desharnais

Goalie: Alex Nedeljkovic/Joel Blomqvist

Expected Capitals Lines

Alex Ovechkin-Dylan Strome-Tom Wilson

Connor McMichael-Pierre-Luc Dubois-Aleiksei Protas

Andrew Mangiapane-Lars Eller-Ethen Frank

Brandon Duhaine-Nic Dowd-Taylor Raddysh

Defense

Rasmus Sandin-John Carlson

Martin Fehervary-Matt Roy

Jakob Chychrun-Trevor van Riemsdyk

Goalie: Logan Thompson

Special Teams

Penguins power play: 24.8%, 7th. Penguins penalty kill: 79.6, 15th.

Capitals power play: 23.2%, 11th. Capitals penalty kill: 82.6%, 5th.

Penguins Game Notes

Despite Washington’s strong resurgence, the Penguins have points in six of their last nine games against Washington (5-3-1).

The Penguins are 9-4-2 in their last 15 home games dating back to Nov. 27.

Today the Penguins begin their 12th set of back-to-back games. Thus far, the team is 9-13-0 in back-to-backs (3-8-0 on the first night and 6-5-0 on the second night).

Kris Letang (7-27-34) and Erik Karlsson (5-21-26) rank first and second in points among active defensemen versus Washington, respectively.

2024-25 is the 20th season that generational talents Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin face off. The two have taken part in 71 head-to-head matchups, where Crosby and the Penguins are 41-26-4 against Ovechkin and the Capitals.

Below are their stats when facing each other in the regular season:

Player GP G A PTS

Sidney Crosby 71gp. 31-61-92

Alex Ovechkin 71gp. 37-30-67

How to Watch

TV: ABC, ESPN+

Radio: 105.9 The X