The top two teams in the Metropolitan Division face off Thursday night at the Prudential Center when the first-place Washington Capitals come off their bye week to visit the second-place New Jersey Devils.
The Capitals (28-14-3) beat the Devils (22-12-8) in each of their first two meetings this season by identical 5-2 scores. After Thursday, the teams do not meet again until the regular-season finale for each on April 7 in Washington.
Winning games within the division is something the Capitals have done well this season, posting an 8-4-1 mark against Metro teams after knocking off the Carolina Hurricanes 4-3 last Friday in their final game before the bye week.