Gameday: at Florida, Mar. 6

John Carlson carries the puck against Florida in December.

The Washington Capitals are in Sunrise, Florida, this evening to take on the Florida Panthers in a big Southeast Division matchup as they look to continue their recent run of strong play.  The Capitals come into tonight's game with 80 points in 65 games, which places them second behind the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Southeast Division and fifth in the Eastern Conference.  The Panthers, on the other hand, have 60 points in 65 games, which places them last in the Southeast and thirteenth in the Conference.  This will be the fourth of six meetings this season between the two division rivals; the Panthers have won twice and the Capitals have won once.  In their most recent meeting, the Capitals overcame a 3-0 deficit to tie late, but eventually fell in overtime, 4-3.  This game will also mark the first game against his old team for Capitals defenseman Dennis Wideman, who was acquired from Florida six days ago.

Florida coach Peter DeBoer is expected to start Scott Clemmensen in goal for his team after Tomas Vokoun gave up 4 goals in a loss to the Thrashers last night. Though he is the backup to Vokoun, Clemmensen is no slouch, with a solid 2.53 GAA and .917 Save% on the season.  In his only other start against the Capitals this season, he stopped 24 of 27 shots in a 3-2 Capitals win.

The Capitals are expected to roll with Michal Neuvirth in nets for the fifth consecutive game.  Neuvy is coming off of a 25-save performance on Thursday night, which saw him beat the Blues 3-2.  In his only other game against the Panthers this season, he stopped 37 of 41 in an overtime loss in mid-January. Outside of the crease, no lineup changes are believed to be on the way from the team that beat St. Louis Thursday.  That means that DJ King and Tyler Sloan will be healthy scratches for Bruce Boudreau, and Jay Beagle will remain on the sideline with an upper-body injury.  Neither Eric Fehr nor Tom Poti are expected to make their returns from long-term injuries, either.

Puck drops for this one 5:08-ish.  Check back later.  And in other reading from 24/7 today, Evgeny Kuznetsov officially announces his plans for next season.