W2W4: Pittsburgh Penguins at Washington Capitals, Game 5

1:51 PM ET

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Washington Capitals are trying to stay alive in their second-round series against the Pittsburgh Penguins, trailing 3-1 in the series and they’ll need a victory in front of the hometown faithful at Verizon Center Saturday night, 7:15 ET, to force a sixth game back in Pittsburgh on Tuesday.

Here’s what to watch for in Game 5:

The Penguins will get a boost from the return of Kris Letang, who served a one-game suspension for a dangerous hit on Marcus Johansson in Game 3. Also rejoining the lineup will be winger Eric Fehr, who was injured for Game 4. “I feel great,” said Fehr, who has been an important part of a line with Chris Kunitz and Evgeni Malkin. Capitals defenseman Brooks Orpik will be serving the final game of his three-game suspension for his hit on Olli Maatta in Game 2. Maatta has not played since and is not expected in the Penguins’ Game 5 lineup, although he did skate on Saturday morning. Defenseman Nate Schmidt will draw back into the Capitals’ lineup after being a healthy scratch in Game 4. He will replace Mike Weber, whose attempt to clear a loose puck early in overtime ended up on Patric Hornqvist’s stick. Hornqvist scored to give the Pens the 3-2 victory.

Speaking of lines combinations, Capitals head coach Barry Trotz will mix things up in the hopes of sparking his team’s slumbering offense. Evgeny Kuznetsov has been skating in practice with Alex Ovechkin and …

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