Two struggling teams but both have a very different outlook on the rest of the season. The Washington Capitals have been losing. They are now 23-28 and they only average 2.4 goals per game. The reality that they are not a good team has started to set in.

The Colorado Avalanche are too good to continue losing. They've had the past 2 days off and are facing an opponent which they can handle. The Avalanche are 19-7 (+9.1) their last 26 tries after scoring 1 goal or less. They are also 31-10 their last 41 tries when playing against a team with a losing record in the second half of the season. Over that time, the Washington Capitals are 19-36 when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season. Colorado bounces back and kicks the Capitals while they're down.