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Sports

Caps eye another victory over Sabres

By Sports Network
Published | Updated

(SportsNetwork.com) - The Washington Capitals look to make it two victories in a row on Monday evening when they conclude a set of back-to-back games with a clash against the Buffalo Sabres.

The Capitals will hit the ice to take on the Sabres one night after shutting out the Boston Bruins 2-0. The victory snapped Washington's two-game slide, gave it a 2-3-0 record on a five-game homestand and moved it two points ahead of Boston for seventh place in the Eastern Conference and ownership of the first wild card spot.

Braden Holtby picked up his eighth shutout of the season, second most in the NHL, with 32 saves, while defensemen John Carlson and Nate Schmidt had the goals.

Caps coach Barry Trotz was disappointed with his club's effort in a loss to Dallas on Friday and thought his club responded well on Sunday.

"I thought we had a lot of urgency and detail," Trotz said.

Holtby notched his 19th career shutout and Nicklas Backstrom picked up two assists to snap a tie with teammate Alex Ovechkin and Michal Pivonka for first place on the franchise's all-time list with 420.

Washington also pulled within four points of the Pittsburgh Penguins for third place in the Metropolitan Division, but have played one more game than the idle Pens.

With regular backup Justin Peters battling a lower-body injury, Holtby could get the start again tonight. He is 4-2-1 lifetime against the Sabres with a 2.92 goals against average and .887 save percentage.

Buffalo hopes to snap an 0-5-1 slide in tonight's matchup, having lost 2-0 to the New York Rangers last time out on Saturday. It marked the 11th time this season that the Sabres were shut out.

Anders Lindback saved 31-of-32 shots in a hard-luck loss.

"I think (Lindback) played a great game in net, made some great saves," said Sabres forward Tyler Ennis. "The penalty kill was good. We played solid tonight. I think if our power play could've gotten one, it would've been a different story."

Buffalo played without defenseman Zach Bogosian due to a lower-body injury and he is questionable for tonight.

Lindback is 2-2-1 in six games (5 starts) versus Washington with a 2.89 GAA and .891 save percentage.

The Sabres and Caps split two meetings in Washington earlier this season, with the Capitals earning a 6-1 victory in the most recent encounter on March 7. Holtby needed to make only 16 saves and was backed by goals from six different skaters.